California 

egional 

acility 


TIIK    WORDS    OF    WELLINGTON. 


"  For  this  is  England's  greatest  son, 
He  that  gain'd  a  hundred  fights, 
Nor  ever  lost  an  English  gnn.'' 

ALFRED  TEXXYSOS. 

"  He  was  the  grandest,  because  the  truest  man  whom  modern 
times  have  produced  :  he  was  the  wisest  and  most  loyal  subject 
that  ever  served  and  supported  the  English  throne." — THE 
REV.  O.  R.  QLEIG  {The  Chaplain  General). 

"  The  man,  who,  lifted  high. 
Conspicuous  object  in  a  Nation's^eye, 
Play'd  in  the  many  games  of  life,  that  one 
Where  what  he  most  did  value  stil!  was  won. 
This  is  the  Happy  Warrior;  this  is  he 
That  every  man  in  arms  should  wish  to  be." 

WORDSWORTH. 


THE  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

COM.KCTKI)      FROM      HIS     DESPATCH  KS. 

LKTTKKS,      AND      SI'KKCHF.S, 

WITH     ANKCDOTKS. 

ETC. 
COMPILED      BY      EDITH     WALFORD. 


NKW    YORK  : 
SCRIBNER,   WELFORD,   AND  CO. 

1869. 


PRESS: — PRINTED  BY  WHITTINGHAM  AND  WII.KINS, 
TOOKS  COURT,  CHANCERY  LAKE. 


PREFACE. 


ERY  little  need  be  said  of  this  companion 
volume  to  the  "  Table-Talk  of  Napoleon." 
The  same  Compiler  has  carried  out  the  sug- 
gestion of  the  Editor,  and  has  sought  from 
a  long  list  of  works  upon  the  great  Duke,  from  pam- 
phlets, reviews,  and  chiefly  from  his  own  despatches, 
letters  and  speeches,  the  opinions  of  him  who  was  cer- 
tainly the  greatest  subject  who  ever  lived.  Opposed  to 
one  who  has  been  called  by  Napier  "  the  greatest  genius 
and  the  greatest  soldier  who  ever  lived,"  he  had  the 
happiness  to  conquer  him ;  but  greater  than  the  glory 
of  conquest  was  the  contrast  which  our  great  General 
exhibited  to  Napoleon.  One  lived  for  himself,  the 
other  for  his  country  ;  one  raised  himself  to  a  throne, 
the  other  was  loyally  content  to  be  a  subject ;  one  was 
restless  in  his  ambition,  the  other  always  quiet  in  his 
noble  subservience.  The  end  of  one  was  Glory,  of  the 
other  Duty. 

1) 


vi  PREFACE. 

The  character  of  the  Duke  of  AYellington  has  been, 
curiously  enough,  better  appreciated  by  M.  de  Brialaiont 
than  by  most  of  his  own  countrymen.  By  the  stupid  mis  - 
application  of  the  name  of  a  steamboat  to  an  old  and  fail- 
ing man,  a  gentle-hearted,  tender,  prayerful  nature  was 
mistaken  for  a  hard  and  iron  heart.  If  we  choose  to 
recollect  that  Wellington  answered  every  letter  that  he 
received,  even  from  beggars,  that  he  gave  thousands  of 
pounds  away  in  charity,  that  he  never  met  an  old 
soldier  who  had  fought  with  him  but  he  gave  him  a 
guinea,  that  he  often  laughed  good-naturedly  at  the 
plots  laid  to  impose  upon  that  very  good  nature,  we  shall 
not  consider  him  an  iron  Duke,  and  we  shall  learn  to 
love  as  well  as  to  venerate  him. 

Here  in  these  pages  the  reader  will  find,  over  and  over 
again,  proofs  of  the  great  Duke's  simpleness,  honesty,  mo- 
desty and  noble-mindedness ;  of  his  truth,  candour,  bra- 
very of  soul ;  of  his  earnestness,  foresight,  hard  work  ;  of 
his  care  for  his  soldiers,  his  mental  generosity  to  rivals, 
his  simplicity  and  true  greatness.  He  will  find  nothing 
exaggerated,  indeed  the  records  of  such  a  life  look  little 
beside  that  of  a  more  expanded  and  less  noble  hero,  as  a 
well  proportioned  body  looks  compact  and  small.  When 
we  consider  how  great  were  his  deeds,  we  are  struck 
with  the  modesty  and  the  smallness  of  his  words.  His 
creed  was  in  a  short  space:  "The  Lord's  Prayer,"  he 
said,  "  contained  the  sum  total  of  religion  and  morals," 
that  prayer  was  the  guide  to  a  life  whose  end  was 
"  doing  duty." 


PREFACE.  MII 

But  short   as    are  his    sentences  his   utterances    are 
weighty.    They  are  not  theatrical,  not  spoken  for  effect, 
but  they  are  true  ;  how  prophetically  wise  one  may  see 
by  his  speech  on  the  Protestant  Church,  129  et  seq.;  his 
warnings  on  the  state  of  Ireland  in  the  year  1834;  his 
ideas  on  Trades  Unions,  p.  159  ;  his  prophecy  about  our 
Railways,  p.  151  ;  his  simple  words  on  the  Jewish  Dis- 
abilities ;  and,  indeed,  on  many  other  topics.     So  clear 
was  his  vision  that  his  speeches  of  forty  years  ago  might 
serve,  with  scarcely  the  alteration  of  a  word,  for  "lead- 
ing articles"  of  to-day.     But  not  for  this  only  are  his 
words  valuable.     As  he  said  at  Waterloo,  "  Gentlemen, 
we  must  keep  pounding  away,"   so  he  keeps  reiterating 
through  life  his  love  of  truth,  attachment  to  duty,  to  the 
straight  way  which  must  always  reach  its  object  soonest. 
Hence  his  sentences  must  have  peculiar  worth,  to  the 
young  especially,  in  times  when  money  is  often  put  be- 
fore honour.     But  the  finest  praise  ever  given  to  him — 
or  to  any  other  man — was  that  by  the  Poet  Laureate 
in  one  of  the  noblest  odes  ever  written,  and  throwing 
some  verses  of  that  as  a  wreath  of  eternal  laurel  over 
his  name,  we  leave  the  words  of  this  truly  great  man  to 
the  public  : — 


His  voice  is  silent  in  your  council-hall 

For  ever ;  and  whatever  tempests  lour, 

For  ever  silent ;  even  if  they  broke 

In  thunder,  silent :  yet  remember  all 

He  spoke  among  you,  and  the  MAN  who  spoke ; 

Who  never  sold  the  truth  to  serve  the  hour, 

Xor  palter'd  with  Eternal  God  lor  power ; 


Tiii  PREFACE. 

Who  let  the  turbid  streams  of  rumour  flow 

Through  either  babbling  world  of  high  and  low ; 

Whose  life  was  work,  whose  language  rife 

With  rugged  maxims  hewn  from  life  ; 

Who  never  spoke  against  a  foe ; 

Whose  eighty  winters  freeze  in  one  rebuke 

All  great  self-seekers  trampling  on  the  right : 

Truth-teller  was  our  England's  Alfred  named ; 

Truth-lover  was  our  English  Duke ; 

Whatever  record  leap  to  light 

He  never  shall  be  shamed. 


THE    WORDS    OF   WELLINGTON. 
LETTERS  AND  DESPATCHES. 

THE  MARHATTA  COUNTRY. 

HAVE  received  your  letter,  and  as  I  had 
some  band  in  sending  you  to  Canara  I  am 
much  concerned  that  your  situation  there  is 
so  uncomfortable  to  yourself.  .  .  .  This 
country  into  which  I  have  coine  to  visit  my  posts  on 
the  Marhattas  frontiers  is  worse  than  that  which  you 
curse  daily.  It  is  literally  not  worth  fighting  for.  .  . 
The  drubbing  that  we  gave  to  the  Marhattas  lately  has 
had  the  best  effects;  and  although  all  the  robbers  are 
in  motion  to  cut  each  other's  throats,  they  treated  us 
with  the  utmost  hospitality,  and  have  sent  back  our 
people,  whom  they  had  driven  away.  (To  Major  Munro^ 
Collector  in  Ccuiara.  Camp  in  the  Produce  of  Loo,  8th 
Oct.  1799.) 

COXDCCT    OF    THE    NATIVES. 

.  .  I  enclose  the  extract  of  a  letter  which  I 
have  received  from  Colonel  Sherbrooke  respecting  the 
conduct  of  the  amildar  at  Chenapatatn.  In  my  opinion 

B 


^  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

the  rule  of  proceeding  between  officers  and  amildars  is, 
to  take  the  most  serious  notice  of  the  conduct  of  the 
former  when  it  appears  to  have  been  such  as  to  deserve 
the  complaint  of  the  latter,  and  never  to  pass  over  any 
disrespect  from  the  amildars  to  the  officers.  Upon 
that  principle  I  removed  the  officer  from  Anantpoor,  of 
whose  conduct  complaint  was  made.  .  .  .  We  well 
know  the  character  of  the  natives  of  this  country;  when 
they  are  likely  to  be  supported  they  are  the  most  tyran  - 
nical  and  impudent  of  men,  and  there  is  no  falsehood 
which  they  will  not  tell  in  support  of,  or  as  an  excuse 
for,  their  conduct.  (  To  Lieut.- Col.  Close.  Seringapatam, 
15th  Dec.  1799.) 

SIR  ARTHUR'S  CONSIDERATION. 

I  have  just  been  down  at  the  Laal  Bang,  and  I  find 
that  your  works  are  going  on  well.  Your  man  had 
begun  a  wall  close  to  the  watercourse,  and  if  that 
should  at  any  time  hereafter  let  any  water  through, 
your  wall  would  suffer,  and  probably  come  down.  I 
have  therefore  desired  him  to  cut  away  half  the  thick- 
ness of  the  wall  which  he  has  begun,  to  leave  about  a 
foot  distance  between  the  watercourse  and  your  wall, 
which  may  answer  for  a  channel  for  the  water  which 
will  ooze  through,  and  to  add  to  the  other  side  of  the 
wall  the  thickness  which  he  takes  from  that  on  the  side 
of  the  watercourse.  If  you  wish  it  I  will  have  this 
done  before  your  return,  and  as  walls  are  not  very 
handsome,  I  will  cover  those  which  must  be  near  your 
house  with  a  creeper.  ...  I  have  sent  you  some 
plantain  trees,  and  shall  have  ethers  for  you  when  the 
season  for  cutting  arrives.  (To  Lieut.- Col.  Close.  Seri?t- 
gapatam,  list.  Dec.  1799.) 


SOLDIERS.  3 

THE  AMILDARS  AND  THE  ENGLISH  OFFICERS. 

.  .  .  I  have  just  received  your  letter  of  the 
24th.  You  are  the  best  judge  what  ought  to  be  done 
with  the  amildar  at  Chenapatam.  Colonel  Sherbrooke 
complains  of  him,  and  it  appears  by  the  man's  own 
account  that  he  had  no  reason  to  complain  of  the 
colonel.  As  he  had  a  gentleman  with  him  who  under- 
stands the  language,  there  can  be  no  doubt  of  his 
having  refused  to  go  to  Colonel  Sherbrooke.  This  the 
amildar  now  denies  ;  but  I  observe  a  probability  that 
it  is  true,  even  in  the  excuse  which  he  makes  ;  namely, 
that  he  had  not  received  orders  to  advance  and  meet 
him.  Colonel  Sherbrooke  is  not  a  man  who  requires 
all  the  extraordinary  attentions  described  in  your  letter, 
nor  if  he  did,  is  it  probable  that  any  of  the  amildars 
would  pay  them ;  but  it  is  proper  that  he  and  all  the 
officers  passing  the  road  should  receive  civility,  and 
therefore  it  is  that  I  wish  this  amildar  to  receive  a 
check  for  his  conduct,  which  will  be  an  example  to 
others.  (To  Lieut. -Col.  Close,  Seringapatam,  '26th  Dec. 
1799.) 

CONSIDERATION  FOB  SOLDIERS. 

.  .  .  I  have  long  objected  to  sending  a  regiment 
to  Chittledroog,  because  there  is  no  accommodation  for 
them,  and  the  station  has  been  found  very  unhealthy ; 
and  I  am  afraid  that  the  delay  of  the  march  of  the  74th 
will  be  attributed  to  my  wish  to  detain  them  at  Banga- 
lore, instead  of  to  its  real  cause.  This  makes  me  feel 
the  disappointment  more  than  I  should  otherwise.  (To 
Lieut.- Col.  Close.  Seringapatam,  25th  Jan.  1800.) 


4  WORDS   OF  WELLINGTON. 

FAIR  TRADING  WITH  THE  NATIVES. 

.  .  .  I  approve  highly  of  any  arrangement  which 
can  be  made  which  will  give  the  people  a  fair  price  for 
their  straw  ;  and  it  is  to  be  observed  that  the  lower  it 
is  bought,  the  better  it  is  for  them,  provided  it  is  suffi- 
cient to  pay  for  the  trouble  of  taking  care  of  it,  and  to 
compensate  them  for  it.  As  the  straw  is  to  be  paid  for, 
I  agree  with  you  that  the  whole  of  it  must  be  forth- 
coming when  wanted.  The  straw  for  the  bullocks  stands 
upon  a  different  footing,  and  of  this  it  is  but  fair  that 
the  ryots  should  have  as  much  as  they  can  use.  In- 
deed it  is  taken  from  them  for  nothing  only  on  the 
principle  that  they  cannot  make  use  of  it.  (To  Lieut.- 
CoL  Close.  Seringapatam,  3rd  Feb.  1800.) 

NATIVE  IDEAS  OP  TIME. 

.  .  >,  The  man  first  told  his  story ;  the  number 
of  inarches  he  made,  where  he  halted,  &c.,  &c.  Barclay 
then  questioned  him  as  to  the  time,  and  made  him  tell 
at  what  places  he  had  seen  each  new  moon ;  and  his 
answers  have  corresponded  exactly  with  his  marches  and 
halts  and  his  arrival  here.  This  is  a  strong  mark  of 
truth,  particularly  in  a  native  who  knows  nothing  of 
time.  (To  Lieut.-Col.  Close.  Seringapatam,  15th  Feb. 
1800.) 

THE  PUBLIC  SERVICE  FIRST. 

I  have  received  a  letter  from  Lord  Mornington  in 
which  he  offers  me  the  command  of  the  troops  intended 
against  Batavia,  provided  Lord  Clive  can  spare  me  from 
this  country.  I  have  written  to  Lord  Clive  upon  the  sub- 
ject a  letter  which  he  will  probably  communicate  to  you; 
and  I  have  left  him  to  accept  for  me  Lord  Mornington's 


REWARDS  AXD  BARGAINS.  5 

offer  or  not,  according  as  he  may  find  it  most  convenient 
for  the  public  service,  after  having  ascertained  from  the 
admiral  the  period  at  which  he  would  propose  to  depart 
from  the  coast  upon  this  service.  The  probable  advan- 
tages and  credit  to  be  gained  are  great ;  but  I  am  deter- 
mined that  nothing  shall  induce  me  to  desire  to  quit 
this  country  until  its  tranquillity  is  ensured.  The 
general  want  of  troops  however  at  the  present  moment, 
and  the  season,  may  induce  the  admiral  to  be  desirous 
to  postpone  the  expedition  till  late  in  the  year.  In  that 
case  it  maybe  convenient  that  I  should  accompany  him  ; 
but  I  beg  if  you  have  any  conversation  with  Lord  dive 
you  will  assure  him  that  if  it  should  be  in  the  smallest 
degree  otherwise  I  shall  be  very  sorry  to  go.  (To  Josiah 
Webbe,  Esq.,  Secretary  to  the  Governor.  Camp  at  Cud- 
dapa,  29th  May,  1800.) 

Xo  MAN  A  JUDGE  IN  HIS  OWN  CAUSE. 

.  No  man  is  a  competent  judge  in  his  own 
cause,  and  I  shall  therefore  be  obliged  to  you  for  your 
opinion  upon  this  subject.  (To  Lieut.- Col.  Close.  Camp 
at  Sera,  2nd  June,  1800.) 

TIME. 

How  true  it  is  that  in  military  operations  time  is 
everything.  (To  Lieut.- Col.  Close.  30th  June,  1800.) 

PUBLIC  REWARDS  AND  SECRET  BARGAINS. 

To  offer  a  public  reward  by  proclamation  for  a 
man's  life,  and  to  make  a  secret  bargain  to  have  it  taken 
away  are  very  different  things  :  the  one  is  to  be  done ; 
the  other,  in  my  opinion,  cannot,  by  an  officer  at  the 
head  of  the  troops.  (To  Lieut. -Col.  Close.  Camp  Right 
of  the  Werdah,  8th  July,  1800.) 


6  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

"  RIGHTS  OF  MEN  "  MAN. 

.  .  .  Our  friend  Munro  has  sent  an  amildar  into 
the  countries  right  of  the  Werdah  who  is  playing  the 
devil.  He  is  a  kind  of  rights  of  men  man,  who  has 
ordered  the  people  to  pay  no  revenue  to  anybody,  and 
of  course  is  obeyed.  One  of  the  consequences  of  his 
orders  is,  that  the  peons  put  into  the  different  villages 
and  forts  by  the  Bhow  do  not  receive  their  subsistence  ; 
they  have  threatened  to  hang  their  havildars,  and  then 
plunder  the  country.  (To  Lieut.-Col.  Close.  Camp  at 
Soondootty,  3rd  Aug.  1800.) 

PHILOSOPHICAL  INDIFFERENCE. 

As  for  the  wishes  of  the  people,  particularly  in  this 
country,  I  put  them  out  of  the  question.  They  are  the 
only  philosophers  about  their  governors  that  ever  I  met 
with,  if  indifference  constitutes  that  character.  (To 
Major  Munro.  Camp  at  HooUy,  20th  Aug.  1800.) 

BREAKING  STRENGTH  BEFORE  ATTACKING. 
.  .  .  Before  we  begin  to  attack  a  whole  people 
we  must  break  their  strength.  This  can  be  done  only 
by  time  and  the  expense  which  always  attends  the  ope- 
rations of  a  large  army  ;  but  if  the  object  is  sufficiently 
great,  which  for  many  reasons  it  appears  to  be,  I  put 
the  expense  out  of  the  question,  and  consider  only 
the  means  of  bringing  such  a  body  of  troops  upon 
that  point  as  will  ensure  our  object.  (To  Lieut.-Col. 
Duney.  Camp  at  Hummursagur,  4th  Sept.  1800.) 

TREACHERY. 

.  .  .  An  honest  killadar  of  Chinnoor  had  written 
to  the  "  King  of  the  World  "  by  a  regular  tappall,  esta- 
blished for  the  purpose  of  giving  him  intelligence  that 


SIR  ARTHUR  AND   GOVERNMENT.  7 

I  was  to  be  at  Newly  on  the  8th  and  at  Chinnoor  on 
the  9th.  His  majesty  was  misled  by  this  information, 
and  was  nearer  me  than  he  expected.  The  honest 
killadar  did  all  he  could  to  detain  me  at  Chinnoor,  but 
I  was  not  to  be  prevailed  upon  to  stop  ;  and  even  went 
so  far  as  to  threaten  to  hang  a  great  man  sent  to  show 
me  the  road,  who  manifested  an  inclination  to  show  me 
a  good  road  to  a  different  place.  My  own  and  the  Mar- 
hutta  cavalry  afterwards  prevented  any  communication 
between  his  Majesty  and  the  killadar.  (To  Major 
Munro.  Camp  at  Yepulpuroy,  llth  Sept.  1800.) 

FOOLS  AND  KNAVES. 

The  common  practice  is  to  accuse  a  man  of  being 
either  a  fool  or  a  knave.  If  he  is  so  fortunate  that  it  is 
impossible  to  give  him  the  former  appellation,  it  is  cer- 
tain that  he  will  be  accused  of  knavery.  (To  Lieut. - 
Col.  Close.  Camp  at  Hoobly,  Wth  Oct.  1800.) 

SIE  ARTHUR  AND  GOVERNMENT. 

.  .  .  I  have  written  a  long  letter  to  government 
this  day  about  my  departure  from  Ceylon,  which  I  hope 
will  explain  everything.  Whether  it  does  or  not,  I 
shall  always  consider  these  expeditions  as  the  most  un- 
fortunate circumstances  for  me,  in  every  point  of  view, 
that  could  have  occurred ;  and  as  such  I  shall  always 
lament  them.  I  was  at  the  top  of  the  tree  in  this  coun- 
try ;  the  governments  of  Fort  St.  George  and  Bombay 
which  I  had  served,  placed  unlimited  confidence  in  me, 
nnd  I  had  received  from  both,  strong  and  repeated  marks 
of  their  approbation.  Before  I  quitted  the  Mysore 
country,  I  arranged  the  plan  for  taking  possession  of  the 
ceded  districts,  which  was  done  without  striking  a  blow ; 


8  WORDS  OF   WELLINGTON. 

and  another  plan  for  conquering  Wynaad  and  re-con- 
quering Malabar,  which  I  am  informed  has  succeeded 
without  loss  on  our  side.  But  this  supersession  has 
ruined  all  my  prospects,  founded  upon  any  service  that 
I  may  have  rendered.  Upon  this  point  I  must  refer 
you  to  the  letters  written  to  me  and  to  the  Governor  of 
Fort  St.  George  in  May  last,  when  an  expedition  to 
Batavia  was  in  contemplation  ;  and  to  those  written  to 
the  governments  of  Fort  St.  George,  Bombay,  and  Cey- 
lon ;  and  to  the  admiral,  Colonel  Champagne,  and  myself 
when  the  troops  were  assembled  in  Ceylon.  I  then  ask 
you,  has  there  been  any  change  whatever  of  circum- 
stances that  was  not  expected  when  I  was  appointed  to 
the  command  ?  If  there  has  not  (and  no  one  can  say 
there  has  without  doing  injustice  to  the  Governor- 
General's  foresight)  my  supersession  must  have  been 
occasioned,  either  by  my  own  misconduct,  or  by  an 
alteration  of  the  sentiments  of  the  Governor-General. 
I  have  not  been  guilty  of  robbery  or  murder,  and 
he  has  certainly  changed  his  mind ;  but  the  world, 
which  is  always  good-natured  towards  those  whose 
affairs  do  not  exactly  prosper,  will  not,  or  rather  does 
not,  fail  to  suspect  that  both  or  worse  have  been  the 
occasion  of  my  being  banished,  like  General  Kray,  to 
my  estate  in  Hungary.  ...  I  put  private  con- 
siderations out  of  the  question,  as  they  ought  and  have 
had  no  weight  in  causing  either  my  original  appoint- 
ment or  my  supersession.  I  am  not  quite  satisfied  with 
the  manner  in  which  I  have  been  treated  by  govern- 
ment on  the  occasion.  However  I  have  lost  neither  my 
health,  spirits,  nor  temper  in  consequence  thereof.  But 
it  is  useless  to  write  any  more  upon  a  subject  of  which 
I  wish  to  retain  no  remembrance  whatever.  ( To  the 
Hun.  H.  Wellesley.  Bombay,  23rd  March,  1801.) 


UNDESERVED  DISAPPROBATION.  9 

PHILOSOPHY. 

You  will  be  glad  to  hear  that  I  propose  to  leave  this 
place  for  Malabar  in  a  day  or  two.  The  Governor- 
General  consented  to  my  return  to  Mysore,  if  I  wished 
it,  at  the  same  time  that  he  said  he  should  regret  my 
quitting  the  army  employed  on  the  expedition.  Upon 
the  whole,  therefore,  I  determined  to  go,  notwithstand- 
ing that  I  was  superseded  in  the  command.  When 
upon  the  point  of  carrying  into  execution  this  laudable 
but  highly  disagreeable  intention,  I  was  seized  by  a 
fever  which  kept  me  in  bed  for  some  days;  and  although 
I  have  now  recovered,  I  am  still  weak,  and  am  taking 
a  remedy  which  prevents  me  from  going  to  sea.  It  has 
therefore  been  impossible  for  me  to  go  on  the  expe- 
dition, and  I  return  to  my  old  situation  with  a  pleasure 
more  than  equal  to  the  regret  which  I  had  on  quitting 
it.1  (To  Lieut.- Col.  Close.  Bombay,  l\th  April,  1801.) 

UNDESERVED  DISAPPROBATION. 

.  .  .  I  am  concerned  that  the  Governor- General 
should  have  any  such  cause  of  uneasiness  as  you  de- 
scribe. However  it  is  very  certain  that  nothing  annoys 
a  man  with  a  feeling  mind  so  much  as  the  disappro- 
bation of  those  whom  chance  has  made  his  superiors  for 
a  short  time ;  particularly  when  he  knows  that  such 
disapprobation  is  undeserved.  (To  Capt.  Malcolm.  Se- 
ringapatam,  20M  Sept.  1801.) 


1  To  Col.  Champagne  on  the  same  subject  he  writes :  "  I 
see  clearly  the  evil  consequences  of  all  this  to  my  reputation 
and  future  views;  but  it  cannot  be  helped,  and  to  things  of 
that  nature  I  generally  contrive  to  make  up  my  mind." 


io  WORDS  OF   WELLINGTON. 

OPINIONS  OF  BRIBERY. 

I  hare  had  the  honour  of  receiving  your  letter  of 
the  15th  this  day,  and  I  lose  no  time  in  replying  to  that 
part  of  it  in  which  you  inform  me  that  the  Rajah  or 
Dessaye,  of  Kittoor,  has  expressed  a  wish  to  be  taken 
under  the  protection  of  the  British  government,  and 
has  offered  to  pay  a  tribute  to  the  Company,  and  to  give 
you  a  bribe  of  4000  pagodas,  and  me  one  of  10,000 
pagodas,  provided  this  point  is  arranged  according  to 
his  wishes.  I  cannot  conceive  what  could  have  induced 
the  Eajah  of  Kittoor  to  imagine  that  I  was  capable  of 
receiving  that  or  any  other  sum  of  money  as  an  induce- 
ment to  do  that  which  he  must  think  improper,  or  he 
would  not  have  offered  it.  ...  I  am  surprised  that 
any  man  in  the  character  of  a  British  officer  should 
not  have  given  the  Rajah  to  understand  that  the  offer 
would  be  considered  as  an  insult,  and  that  he  should  not 
rather  have  forbidden  its  renewal,  than  that  he  should 
have  encouraged  it,  and  even  have  offered  to  receive  a 
quarter  of  the  sum  proposed  to  be  given  to  him  for 
prompt  payment.  I  can  attribute  your  conduct  upon 
this  occasion  to  nothing  excepting  the  most  inconsiderate 
indiscretion,  and  to  a  wish  to  benefit  yourself,  which  got 
the  better  of  your  prudence.  I  desire,  however,  that 
you  will  refrain  from  a  renewal  of  the  subject  with 
the  Rajah  of  Kittoor  at  all,  and  that  if  he  should  renew 
it  you  will  inform  him  that  I  and  all  British  officers  con- 
sider such  offers  as  insults  on  the  part  of  those  by  whom 

they  are  made.     (To .     Seringapatam.    20th 

Jan.  1803.) 

RISK. 

In  all  great  actions  there  is  risk,  which  the  little 
minds  of  those  who  will  form  their  judgment  of  your's 


ORDERS  FOR  AX  HOSPITAL.  11 

will  readily  perceive  in  that  which  I  am  now  considering  ; 
but  their  remarks  ought  not  to  give  you  a  moment's 
uneasiness.  (To  the  Governor- General.  Poonah,  list 
April,  1803.) 

THE   PESHWAH. 

.  .  God  send  the  Peshwah  soon  here.  My 
fingers  itch  to  do  something  for  the  security  of  the 
Nizam's  frontier;  and  till  the  Peshwah  is  established  at 
Poonah,  and  his  government  begins  to  have  some  autho- 
rity, it  will  not  answer  to  alter  the  disposition  which 
must  insure  that  object,  only  to  save  a  few  villages  from 
plunder.  (To  Lieut.- Col.  Close.  Camp  at  Poonah,  '26th 
April,  1803.) 

ORDERS  FOR  AN  HOSPITAL. 

.  .  .  You  must  immediately  establish  an  hospital, 
and  leave  in  it  all  the  sick  of  the  Scotch  brigade  that 
require  carriage.  Look  for  some  secure  place  for  this 
establishment  within  the  Nizam's  frontier.  If  you  do 
not  do  this,  the  first  action  you  will  have  will  be  ruinous 
to  you.  I  know  that  the  surgeons  will  carry  about  the 
sick  men  till  they  die ;  although  I  am  aware  that  gene- 
rally speaking  it  is  better  to  keep  the  sick  men  with 
their  corps ;  but  in  a  case  of  this  kind,  where  there  are 
so  many  men  sick,  and  the  carriage  for  the  sick  is  so 
insufficient,  and  there  is  every  probability  that  there 
will  be  more  sick,  an  hospital  must  be  established  in 
which  every  case  not  on  the  mending  hand  ought  to  be 
thrown.  I  cannot  give  Mr.  Kennedy  any  assistance  of 
surgeons.  The  best  man  you  have  should  be  left  in 
charge  of  the  hospital,  and  the  care  of  the  corps  from 
which  you  take  him  be  given  to  somebody  else.  One 
gentleman  will  easily  attend  two  corps.  (To  Col.  Ste- 
venson. Poonah,  2nd  May,  1803.) 


la  WORDS  OF   WELLINGTON. 

OFFICERS'  TEMPERS. 

Captain  Mackay  is  an  honest  and  zealous  servant  of 
the  public ;  but  he  is  the  most  unaccommodating  public 
officer  I  have  ever  met  with.  He  has  never  failed  to 
contrive  to  quarrel  with  the  head  of  every  other  depart- 
ment with  which  he  has  been  concerned ;  and  I  have 
always  had  the  greatest  difficulty  in  keeping  matters 
between  him  and  others  in  such  a  state  as  that  the  ser- 
vice should  not  be  impeded  by  their  disputes.  I  imagine 
that  the  difficulties  between  Captain  Mackay  and  Major 
Symonds,  to  which  you  have  alluded,  are  to  be  attri- 
buted to  the  state  of  Captain  Mackay's  temper ;  and 
possibly,  in  some  degree,  to  a  want  of  accommodation 
on  the  part  of  Major  Symonds.  I  make  no  doubt  but 
that  you  will  have  observed  that  this  officer,  also, 
although  an  excellent  man,  has  more  of  the  oak  than 
the  willow  in  his  disposition.  (To  Lieut.-Gen.  Stuart. 
Poonah,  26th  May,  1803.) 

CHARACTER  OF  INDIAN  MAGNATES. 

.  .  .  This  ought  to  be  a  lesson  to  us  to  beware 
not  to  involve  ourselves  in  engagements  either  with, 
or  in  concert  with,  or  on  behalf  of,  people  who  have  no 
faith  or  no  principle  of  honour  or  of  honesty,  or  such  as 
usually  among  us  guide  the  conduct  of  gentlemen, 
unless  duly  and  formally  authorized  by  our  govern- 
ment. (To  Lieut.-Gen.  Stuart.  Camp  at  Poonah,  3\st 
May,  1803.) 

CHARACTER  OF  THE  PESHWAH. 

.  .  .  I  do  not  believe  that  the  Peshwah  is  trea- 
cherous ;  on  the  contrary,  I  am  convinced  that  he  sees 


ENGLISH  NAME  DISGRACED.  13 

bis  only  safety  is  in  the  treaty  with  the  Company ;  but 
he  is  incapable  of  transacting  the  business  of  his  govern- 
ment ;  he  is  jealous  of  the  influence  we  have  acquired 
over  his  chiefs,  although  he  knows  that  he  owes  to  that 
influence  bis  restoration  to  power ;  and  his  disposition 
is  so  vindictive  that  he  cannot  be  brought  to  pardon 
those  who  have  injured  him,  or  to  whom  he  has  done  an 
injury.  (To  Lieut.- Gen.  Stuart.  Camp  at  Charowly, 
4th  June,  1803.) 

CLAIMS  FOUNDED  UPON  SERVICE. 

The  gentleman  you  now  have  recommended  to  me  is 
one  for  whom  I  have  a  respect,  and  in  whose  advance- 
ment and  welfare  I  am  materially  interested,  as  he  has 
been  frequently  recommended  to  me  in  the  strongest 
terms  by  his  relation,  General  Mackenzie,  a  very  old 
friend  of  mine.  But  both  you  and  I,  my  dear  colonel,  must 
attend  to  claims  of  a  superior  nature  to  those  brought 
forward,  either  in  consequence  of  our  private  feelings 
of  friendship  or  of  recommendation.  Of  this  nature  are 
the  claims  founded  upon  service.  (To  Lieut.-CoL  Close. 
Camp  at  Peepulgaum,  3rd  July,  1803.) 

THE  ENGLISH  NAME  DISGRACED. 

TVhat  has  passed  in  Guzerat  is  disgusting  to  a  degree. 
The  English  name  is  disgraced,  and  the  worst  of  it  is 
that  endeavours  are  made  to  conceal  the  disgrace  under 
an  hypocritical  cant  about  humanity  ;  and  those  feelings 
which  are  brought  forward  so  repeatedly  respecting  the 
garrison  of  Parneira,  are  entirely  forgotten  in  respect  to 
the  unfortunate  British  soldiers  of  the  75th  and  84th 
Regiments  who,  unlike  the  gentlemen,  submitting  to  be 
humbugged  by  a  parcel  of  blackguards,  are  suffering  in 
the  rains.  (Camp,  20M  July,  1803.) 


i4  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

PREDATORY  WAR. 

A  system  of  predatory  war  must  have  some  foundation 
in  strength,  of  some  kind  or  other.  (To  Lieut.- Col. 
Collins.  Camp  at  Ahmednuggur,  15th  Aug.  1803.) 

REAL  ECONOMY. 

Every  attention  must  be  paid  to  economy,  but  I  con- 
sider nothing  in  this  country  so  valuable  as  the  life  and 
health  of  the  British  soldier,  and  nothing  so  expensive 
as  soldiers  in  hospital.  On  this  ground  it  is  worth 
while  to  incur  almost  any  expense  to  preserve  their 
lives  and  their  health.  I  also  request,  you  to  pay  par- 
ticular attention  to  their  discipline  and  regularity,  and 
to  prevent  their  getting  intoxicating  liquors,  which  tend 
to  their  destruction.  (To  Col.  Murray.  Camp  at  Seu- 
boogaum,  21st  Aug.  1803.) 

READY  FOB  RESPONSIBILITY. 

I  certainly  am  ready  and  willing  to  be  responsible  for 
any  measure  which  I  adopt,  and  to  incur  all  personal 
risks  for  the  public  service.  (To  the  Governor  of  Bom- 
bay. Cam/?,  29th  Aug.  1803.) 

"ACQUIESCENCE"  AND  "APPROBATION." 

.  .  .  Mr.  Duncan,  after  having  acquiesced  in  the  plan 
suggested  by  me  for  the  organization  of  the  troops  and 
the  plan  of  operations  in  Guzerat,  has  informed  me  that 
"  acquiescence  "  did  not  mean  "  approbation,"  and  he 
has  detailed  his  objections  to  the  general  system  as 
well  as  to  the  particulars  of  the  plan,  which  go  to  fun- 
damentals. I  cannot  understand  the  nice  distinction 
between  the  "acquiescence"  of  a  governor  in  a  plan 
for  the  defence  of  the  provinces  under  his  government, 


MOVEMENTS  OF  LARGE  BODIES.  15 

and  his  "  approbation  "  of  that  plan.     (To  Lieut.- CoL 
Close.     Camp  at  Bufgaum,  30th  Aug.  1803.) 

PARTY  SPIRIT. 

It  occurs  to  me  that  there  is  much  party  spirit  in  the 
army  in  your  quarter  ;  this  must  be  put  an  end  to ;  and 
there  is  only  one  mode  of  effecting  this,  and  that  is  for 
the  commanding  oflicer  to  be  of  no  side  excepting  that 
of  the  public  ;  to  employ  indiscriminately  those  who 
can  best  serve  the  public,  be  they  who  they  may,  or  in 
whatever  service.  The  consequence  will  be  that  the 
service  will  go  on  ;  all  parties  will  join  in  forwarding  it 
and  in  respecting  him,  there  will  be  an  end  to  their 
petty  disputes  about  trifles,  and  the  commanding  officer 
will  be  at  the  head  of  an  army  instead  of  a  party.  (To 
Col.  Murray.  Camp,  16th  Sept.  1803.) 

NATIVE  MARRIAGES. 

There  ought  to  be  no  restriction  whatever  upon  the 
princes  taking  as  many  women,  either  as  wives  or  con- 
cubines, as  they  may  think  proper.  They  cannot  employ 
their  money  in  a  more  harmless  way,  and  the  considera- 
tion of  the  future  expense  of  the  support  of  a  few  more 
women,  after  their  death,  is  trifling.  Let  them  marry 
whom  they  please.  Their  marriages  with  Mussulmen 
families  only  create  an  additional  number  of  dependants 
and  poor  connections,  and  additional  modes  of  spending 
their  money.  (Artswers  to  Queries  from  Capt.  Marriott 
at  Mysore.  Assye,  26th  Sept.  1803  ) 

THE  MOVEMENTS  OF  LARGE  BODIES. 

Large  bodies  move  slowly,  and  it  is  not  difficult  to 
gain  intelligence  of  their  motions.  A  few  rapid  and 


1 6  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

well-combined  movements  made  not  directly  upon  them, 
but  with  a  view  to  prevent  the  execution  of  any  fa- 
vourite design,  or  its  mischievous  consequences,  soon  bring 
them  to  their  bearings.  They  stop,  look  about  them, 
begin  to  feel  restless,  and  are  obliged  to  go  off.  In  this 
manner  I  lately  stopped  the  march  of  the  enemy  upon 
Hyderabad,  which  they  certainly  intended ;  they  were 
obliged  to  return,  and  bring  up  and  join  their  infantry; 
and  ycxi  will  have  heard  that  in  a  most  furious  action 
which  I  had  with  their  whole  army,  with  one  divi- 
sion only,  on  the  23rd  September,  I  completely  defeated 
them,  taking  100  pieces  of  cannon,  all  their  ammunition, 
&c.  They  fled  in  the  greatest  confusion  to  Burhani- 
poor.  Take  my  word  for  it,  that  a  body  of  light  troops 
will  not  act  unless  supported  by  a  heavy  body  that  will 
fight ;  and  what  is  more,  they  cannot  act,  because  they 
cannot  subsist  in  the  greater  part  of  India  at  the  present 
day.  (To  Lieut.-Col.  Munro.  Camp,  1st  Oct.  1803.) 

PRIZE  MONEY. 

You  and  I  know  well  that  there  is  nothing  respecting 
which  an  army  is  so  anxious  as  its  prize  money.  (To 
Major  Shawe.  Camp,  6th  Nov.  1803.) 

CORRESPONDENCE. 

I  take  the  liberty  to  recommend  as  a  general  rule, 
that  between  those  public  officers  by  whom  business  can 
be  done  verbally,  correspondence  should  be  forbidden, 
as  having  a  great  tendency  to  prevent  disputes  upon 
trifling  subjects,  and  to  save  the  time  of  the  public 
officers  who  are  obliged,  some  to  peruse  and  consider, 
and  others  to  copy,  those  voluminous  documents  about 
nothing.  (To  the  Secretary  of  the  Governor  of  Bombay. 
Camp,  llth  Nov.  1803.) 


CHARACTER  OF  THE  MARHATTAS.          17 

TIME. 

Time  is  everything  in  military  operations,  particularly 
in  conducting  convoys.  If  these  come  on  with  celerity, 
they  run  no  great  risk ;  but  if  they  are  delayed  long  at 
any  place,  information  is  given  of  them,  and  they  are 
attacked,  and  the  success  is  always  a  matter  of  doubt. 
(To  Major  Malcolm.  Camp,  15th  Nov.  1803.) 

CESSATION  OF  HOSTILITIES  BEFORE  PEACE. 

The  rule  not  to  cease  from  hostilities  till  peace  is 
concluded  is  a  good  one  in  general ;  and  I  have  adhered 
to  it  in  practice  at  the  siege  of  Ahmednuggur,  and  have 
ordered  an  adherence  to  it  in  all  instances  of  that  kind. 
But  in  this  I  think  it  is  a  rule  of  which  the  breach  is 
more  beneficial  than  the  observance.  (To  Major  Shawe. 
Camp  at  Eujoora,  23rd  Nov.  1803.) 

SUBMISSION  TO  EXISTING  RULES. 

In  conducting  the  extensive  duties  with  which  I  am 
charged,  it  has  been  my  constant  wish  to  conform  to 
existing  rules  and  establishments,  and  to  introduce  no 
innovations  ;  so  that  at  the  conclusion  of  the  war,  when 
my  duties  would  cease,  everything  might  go  on  in  its 
accustomed  channel.  (To  the  Secretary  of  the  Governor 
of  Bombay.  Camp  at  Ellechpoor,  5th  Dec.  1803.) 

CHARACTER  OF  THE  MARHATTAS. 

It  is  not  possible  to  reward  these  people  (the  Mar- 

hattas)  excepting  by  pension.      They  are  so  depraved 

in  their  habits  ;  their  notions  of  justice  and  government 

are  so  erroneous ;  and  they  are  so  little  to  be  depended 

c 


1 8  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

upon,  excepting  to  follow  their  own  interests,  that  they 
cannot  be  employed  in  any  manner  in  the  Company's 
service.  (To  the  Governor-General.  Camp,  15th  Jan. 
1804.) 

FORMATION  AND  DISCIPLINE  OF  CAVALRT. 

.  .  .  The  formation  and  discipline  of  a  body  of 
cavalry  are  very  difficult  and  tedious,  and  require  great 
experience  and  patience  in  the  persons  who  attempt  it. 
(To  Major  Kirkpatrick.  Camp  at  Waroor.  16th  Jan. 
1804.) 

"  PEPPER  "  AND  WATER. 

.  .  .  P.S. —  Malcolm  writes  from  Scindiah's  camp 
that  at  the  first  meeting  Scindiah  received  him  with 
great  gravity,  which  he  had  intended  to  preserve 
throughout  the  visit.  It  rained  violently,  and  an  officer 
of  the  escort,  Mr.  Pepper,  an  Irishman  (a  nephew  of  old 
Bective's,  by  the  bye)  sat  under  a  flat  part  of  the  tent 
which  received  a  great  part  of  the  rain  that  fell.  At 
length  it  burst  through  the  tent  upon  the  head  of  Mr. 
Pepper,  who  was  concealed  by  the  torrent  that  fell,  and 
was  discovered  after  some  time  by  an  "  Oh  Jasus  ! "  and 
a  hideous  yell.  Scindiah  laughed  violently,  as  did  all 
the  others  present ;  and  the  gravity  and  dignity  of  the 
durbar  degenerated  into  a  Malcolm  riot ;  after  which 
they  all  parted  upon  the  best  terms.  (To  the  Marquis 
WeUesley.  Camp,  21st  Jan.  1804.) 

DISPOSITION  TO  SHOW  MERCY. 

The  war  will  be  eternal,  if  nobody  is  to  be  forgiven  ; 
and  I  certainly  think  that  the  British  Government  cannot 
intend  to  make  the  British  troops  the  instruments  of 
the  Peshwah's  revenge.  You  must  decide  what  is  to  be 


LONG  MARCHES.  19 

done  with  this  person  (Baba  Phurkia).  I  have  ordered 
him  to  quit  the  Nizam's  territories,  and  not  to  come 
near  this  army.  The  answer  of  the  vakeel  is  natural. 
It  is,  Where  is  a  man  to  go  who  is  not  allowed  to  remain 
in  the  territories  of  the  Company,  or  of  the  Company's 
allies  ?  When  the  power  of  the  Company  is  so  great, 
little  dirty  passions  must  not  be  suffered  to  guide  its 
measures.  (To  Lieut,- Col.  Close.  Camp  at  Paunchore, 
2-2jidJan.  1804.) 

MABHATTA  TRUTH. 

The  Marhattas  are  but  little  in  the  habit  of  adhering 
to  truth;  they  are  generally  indistinct  in  their  account 
of  a  transaction  of  the  nature  of  that  alluded  to  ;  and  it 
rarely  happens  that  those  accounts  are  found  to  agree 
exactly  with  the  state  of  the  facts.  ( To  the  Hon.  M. 
Elphiiistone  with  the  Rajah  of  Berar.  Camp  at  Yailum, 
26th  Jan.  1804.) 

BRITISH  MODERATION. 

I  declare  that  when  I  view  the  treaty  of  peace  and 
its  consequences,  I  am  afraid  it  will  be  imagined  that 
the  moderation  of  the  British  Government  in  India  has 
a  strong  resemblance  to  the  ambition  of  other  govern- 
ments. (To  Major  Malcolm.  Camp,  29th  Jan.  1804.) 

LONG  MARCHES. 

Marches  such  as  I  have  made  in  this  war  were  never 
known  or  thought  of  before.  In  the  last  eight  days  of 
the  month  of  October,  I  marched  above  120  miles  and 
passed  through  two  ghauts  with  heavy  guns  and  all  the 
equipments  of  the  troops,  and  this  without  injury  to  the 
efficiency  of  the  army ;  and  in  the  few  days  previous  to 
this  battle,  when  I  had  determined  to  go  into  Berar,  I 


20  WORDS    OF  WELLINGTON. 

never  moved  less  than  between  seventeen  and  twenty 
miles,  and  I  marched  twenty-six  miles  on  the  day  on 
which  it  was  fought.  ( To  the  Hon.  H.  Wettesley.  Camp, 
40  miles  N.  E.  from  Ahmednuggur,  24th  Jan.— 5th  Feb. 
1804.) 

A  PUBLIC  MAN'S  DUTY. 

It  is  necessary  for  a  man  who  fills  a  public  situation, 
and  who  has  great  public  interests  in  charge,  to  lay  aside 
all  private  considerations,  whether  on  his  own  account 
or  that  of  other  persons.  (To  Major  Graham.  Poonah, 
2nd  March,  1804.) 

GRATIFYING  ESTEEM. 

I  have  had  the  honour  of  receiving  your  letter  of  the 
1st  inst.  in  which  you  have  announced  your  intention 
to  present  to  me  a  most  handsome  pledge  of  your  re- 
spect and  esteem,  which  shall  commemorate  the  great 
victory  which  you  gained  over  the  enemy.  Be  assured, 
gentlemen,  that  I  never  shall  lose  the  recollection  of  the 
events  of  the  last  year,  or  of  the  officers  and  troops,  by 
means  of  whose  ability,  zeal,  and  disciplined  bravery 
they  have  in  a  great  measure  been  brought  about  in  this 
part  of  India;  but  it  is  highly  gratifying  to  me  to  be 
certain  that  the  conduct  of  the  operations  of  the  war 
has  met  with  the  approbation,  and  has  gained  for  me  the 
esteem  of  the  officers  under  my  command.  (To  Lieut. - 
Col.  Wallace,  fy-c.,  and  Officers  of  the  Division  of  the 
Army  in  the  Deccan.  Camp  at  Poonah,  4th  March,  1804.) 

CONCLUSION  OF  WAR. 

When  war  is  concluded  I  am  decidedly  of  opinion 
that  all  animosity  should  be  forgotten,  and  that  all  pri- 
soners should  be  released.  (To  E.  Scott  Waring,  Esq., 
Poonah.  Bombay,  llth  March,  1804.) 


REASONABLE  CHARITY.  ^\ 

BRITISH  GOOD  FAITH. 

I  would  sacrifice  Gwalior  or  every  frontier  of  India, 
ten  times  over,  in  order  to  preserve  our  credit  for  scru- 
pulous good  faith,  and  the  advantages  and  honour  we 
gained  by  the  late  war  and  the  peace  ;  and  we  must  not 
fritter  them  away  in  arguments  drawn  from  overstrained 
principles  of  the  laws  of  nations  which  are  not  under- 
stood in  this  country.  What  brought  me  through  many 
difficulties  in  the  war,  and  the  negotiations  for  peace  ? 
The  British  good  faith,  and  nothing  else.  (To  Major 
Malcolm.  Bombay,  17th  March,  1804.) 

REASONABLE  CHARITY. 

.  .  The  mode  in  which  I  propose  to  relieve 
the  distresses  of  the  inhabitants  is  not  to  give  grain  or 
money  in  charity.  Those  who  suffer  from  famine  may 
properly  be  divided  into  two  classes;  those  who  can 
and  those  who  cannot  work.  In  the  latter  class  may  be 
included  old  persons,  children,  and  the  sick  women,  who 
from  their  former  situation  in  life  have  been  unaccus- 
tomed to  labour,  and  are  weakened  by  the  effects  of 
famine.  The  former,  viz.  those  of  both  sexes  who  can 
work,  ought  to  be  employed  by  the  public ;  and  in 
the  course  of  this  letter  I  shall  point  out  the  work  on 
which  I  should  wish  that  they  might  be  employed,  and 
in  what  manner  paid.  The  latter,  viz.  those  who 
cannot  work,  ought  to  be  taken  into  an  hospital  and 
fed,  and  receive  medical  aid  and  medicine  at  the  ex- 
pense of  the  public.  According  to  this  mode  of  pro- 
ceeding subsistence  will  be  provided  for  all ;  the  public 
will  receive  some  benefit  from  the  expense  which  will 
be  incurred  ;  and  above  all,  it  will  be  certain  that  no 
able-bodied  person  will  apply  for  relief,  unless  he  should 


22  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

be  willing  to  work  for  his  subsistence  ;  that  none  will 
apply  who  are  able  to  work,  and  who  are  not  real  ob- 
jects of  charity ;  and  that  none  will  come  to  Ahmed- 
nuggur  for  the  purpose  of  partaking  of  the  food  which 
must  be  procured  by  their  labour  or  to  obtain  which 
they  must  submit  to  the  restraint  of  an  hospital.  (To 
Major  Graham.  Bombay,  llth  April,  1804.) 

SECHECT  IN  PUBLIC  AFFAIRS. 

There  is  nothing  more  certain  than  that  of  100  affairs, 
99  might  be  posted  up  at  the  market-cross  without 
injury  to  the  public  interests ;  but  the  misfortune  is 
that  where  the  public  business  is  the  subject  of  general 
conversation,  and  is  not  kept  secret,  as  a  matter  of  course, 
upon  every  occasion,  it  is  very  difficult  to  keep  it  secret 
upon  that  occasion  on  which  it  is  necessary.  There  is  an 
awkwardness  in  a  secret  which  enables  discerning  men 
(of  which  description  there  are  always  plenty  in  an  army), 
invariably  to  find  it  out ;  and  it  may  be  depended  upon, 
that  whenever  the  public  business  ought  to  be  kept  se- 
cret, it  always  suffers  when  it  is  exposed  to  public  view. 
For  this  reason  secrecy  is  always  best,  and  those  who 
have  been  long  trusted  with  the  conduct  of  public  affairs 
are  in  the  habit  of  never  making  known  public  business 
of  every  description  that  it  is  not  necessary  that  the 
public  should  know.  The  consequence  is  that  secrecy 
becomes  natural  to  them,  and  as  much  a  habit  as  it  is 
to  others  to  talk  of  public  matters ;  and  they  have  it  in 
their  power  to  keep  things  secret  or  not  as  they  may 
think  proper.  .  .  .  Remember  that  what  I  recom- 
mend to  you  is  far  removed  from  mystery ;  in  fact  I 
recommend  silence  upon  the  public  business  upon  all 
occasions,  in  order  to  avoid  the  necessity  of  mystery 
upon  any.  (To  Lieut.- Col.  Wallace.  Camp  at  Niggeree, 
28M  June,  1804.) 


THE  EXISTING    GOVERNMENT.  23 

UNHESITATING  BUT  NOT  UNREASONING  DUTY. 

If  my  services  were  absolutely  necessary  for  the  se- 
curity of  the  British  Empire  or  to  ensure  its  peace,  I 
should  not  hesitate  for  a  moment  about  staying,  even  for 
years  ;  but  these  men  or  the  public  have  no  right  to 
ask  me  to  stay  in  India,  merely  because  my  presence,  in 
a  particular  quarter,  may  be  attended  with  convenience. 
{To  Major  Shawe.  Seringapatam,  4th  Jan.  1805.) 

DIFFICULTY  IN  TRACING  CAUSES. 

.  .  It  must  ever  be  difficult  to  trace  exactly  the 
causes  of  the  influence  of  one  power  over  the  councils 
of  another ;  particularly  for  a  person  who  has  not  a  very 
accurate  knowledge  of  characters.  (To  Lieut.-Col. 
Kirkpatrick.  Seringapatam,  19th  Jan.  1805.) 

MODESTY. 

I  have  no  confidence  in  my  own  judgment  in  any  case 
in  which  my  own  wishes  are  involved.  I  mistrust  the 
judgment  of  every  man  in  a  case  in  which  his  own  wishes 
are  concerned.  (To  Major  Shawe.  Seringapatam,  3rd 
Feb.  1805.) 

THE  EXISTING  GOVERNMENT. 

I  don't  think  that  this  Government  can  last  very  long: 
you  can  have  no  idea  of  the  disgust  created  by  the  harsh- 
ness of  their  measures,  by  the  avidity  with  which  they 
have  sought  for  office,  and  by  the  indecency  with  which 
they  have  dismissed  every  man  supposed  to  have  been 
connected  with  Pitt.  (To  Lieut.-Col.  Malcolm.  Lon- 
don, 25th  Feb.  1806.) 


Z4  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

BOTH  SIDES  or  THE  QUESTION. 

It  frequently  happens  that  the  people  who  do  commit 
outrages  and  disturbances  have  some  reason  to  com- 
plain ;  but  in  my  opinion  that  is  not  a  subject  for  the 
consideration  of  the  general  officer.  (To  Brig.-Gen. 
Lee.  Cork,  1th  July,  1808.) 

SENTIMENTS  IN  FAVOUR  OP  THE  SPANISH. 

It  is  impossible  to  convey  to  you  an  idea  of  the  sen- 
timent which  prevails  here  in  favour  of  the  Spanish 
cause.  The  difference  between  any  two  men,  is  whether 
the  one  is  a  better  or  a  worse  Spaniard,  and  the  better 
Spaniard  is  the  one  who  detests  the  French  most  heartily. 
I  understand  that  there  is  actually  no  French  party  in 
the  country,  and  at  all  events  I  am  convinced  that  no 
man  now  dares  to  show  that  he  is  a  friend  to  the 
French.  (To  Visct.  Castlereagh.  Coruntia,  2lst  July, 
1808.) 

FOOLISHNESS  OF  PUSHING  RAW  TROOPS  FORWARD. 

There  is  nothing  so  foolish  as  to  push  half  disciplined 
troops  forward ;  for  the  certain  consequence  must  be, 
either  their  early  and  precipitate  retreat  if  the  enemy 
should  advance,  or  their  certain  destruction.  (To  Lieut.- 
Col.  Front.  Lavas,  6th  Aug.  1808.) 

VlMIERO. 

The  action  of  Vimiero  is  the  only  one  I  have  ever 
been  in,  in  which  everything  passed  as  was  directed,  and 
no  mistake  was  made  by  any  of  the  officers  charged  with 
its  conduct.  (To  H.R.H.  the  Duke  of  York.  Vimiero, 
22nd  Aug.  1808.) 


PROVOST  DUTY.  25 

ASTONISHMENT  AT  ABUSE. 

You  will  readily  believe  that  I  was  much  surprised 
when  I  arrived  in  England  to  hear  of  the  torrents  of 
abuse  with  which  I  had  been  assailed  ;  and  that  I  had 
been  accused  of  every  crime  of  which  a  man  can  be 
guilty  except  cowardice.  I  have  not  read  one  word 
that  has  been  written  on  either  side,  and  I  have  refused 
to  publish,  and  don't  mean  to  authorize  the  publication 
of  a  single  line  in  my  defence.  (7b  the  Duke  of  Rich- 
mond. London,  10th  Oct.  1808.) 

DISSATISFACTION  IN  AN  ARMY. 

We  are  not  naturally  a  military  people,  the  whole  bu- 
siness of  an  army  upon  service  is  foreign  to  our  habits, 
and  is  a  constraint  upon  them,  particularly  in  a  poor 
country  like  this.  This  constraint  naturally  excites  a 
temper  ready  to  receive  any  impressions  which  will  cre- 
ate dissatisfaction ;  and  when  dissatisfaction  exists  in  an 
army,  the  task  of  the  commander  is  difficult  indeed.  I 
am  therefore  most  desirous  that  the  reasonable  grounds 
for  it,  which  do  now  exist,  should  be  removed ;  and  I 
have  pointed  out  one  of  two  modes  in  which  this  object 
can  be  effected.  (To  the  Right  Hon.  J.  Villiers.  Coim- 
bra,  30th  May,  1809.) 

THE  BRITISH  ARMY. 

I  have  long  been  of  opinion  that  a  British  army  could 
bear  neither  success  nor  failure.  To  the  Right  Hon.  J. 
Villiers.  Coimbra,  May  31st,  1809.) 

PROVOST  DUTY. 

.  .  .  There  ought  to  be  in  the  British  army  a  re- 
gular provost  establishment,  of  which  a  proportion  should 


26  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

be  attached  to  every  army  sent  abroad.  All  the  foreign 
armies  have  such  an  establishment,  the  French  Gendar- 
merie Nationals,  to  the  amount  of  thirty  or  forty  with 
each  of  their  corps ;  the  Spaniards  their  policea  militar, 
to  a  still  larger  amount ;  while  we,  who  require  such  an 
aid  more,  I  am  sorry  to  say,  than  any  of  the  other  na- 
tions of  Europe,  have  nothing  of  the  kind  excepting  a 
few  sergeants,  who  are  taken  from  the  line  for  the  oc- 
casion, and  who  are  probably  not  very  fit  for  the  duties 
which  they  are  to  perform. 

The  authority  and  duties  of  the  provost  ought,  in 
some  manner  to  be  recognized  by  the  law.  By  the  cus- 
tom of  British  armies,  the  provost  has  been  in  the  habit 
of  punishing  on  the  spot  (even  with  death,  under  the 
orders  of  the  commander-in-chief),  soldiers  found  in 
the  act  of  disobedience  of  orders,  of  plunder,  or  of  out- 
rage. There  is  no  authority  for  this  practice,  except- 
ing custom,  which  I  conceive  would  hardly  warrant  it ; 
and  yet  I  declare  that  I  do  not  know  in  what  manner 
the  army  is  to  be  commanded  at  all,  unless  the  practice 
is  not  only  continued,  but  an  additional  number  of  pro- 
vosts appointed. 

There  is  another  branch  of  this  subject  which  deserves 
serious  consideration.  We  all  know  that  the  diseipline 
and  regularity  of  all  armies  depend  upon  the  diligence 
of  the  regimental  officers,  particularly  the  subalterns. 
I  may  order  what  I  please,  but  if  they  do  not  execute 
what  I  order,  or  if  they  execute  it  with  negligence,  I 
cannot  expect  that  British  soldiers  will  be  orderly  or  re- 
gular. There  are  two  incitements  to  men  of  this  descrip- 
tion to  do  their  duty  as  they  ought ;  the  fear  of  punish- 
ment and  the  hope  of  reward.  As  for  the  first,  it  cannot 
be  given  individually ;  for  I  believe  I  should  find  it  very 
difficult  to  convict  any  officer  of  doing  this  description 


SPANISH  DIFFICULTIES.  27 

of  duty  with  negligence,  more  particularly  as  he  is  to  be 
tried  by  others,  probably  guilty  of  the  same  offence. 
But  these  evils  of  which  I  complain  are  committed  by 
whole  corps ;  and  the  only  way  in  which  they  can  be 
punished  is  by  disgracing  them,  by  sending  them  into 
garrison,  and  reporting  them  to  His  Majesty.  I  may 
and  shall  do  this  by  one  or  two  battalions,  but  I  cannot 
venture  to  do  it  by  more  ;  and  then  there  is  an  end  to 
the  fear  of  this  punishment,  even  if  those  who  received 
it  were  considered  in  England  as  disgraced  persons  rather 
than  martyrs. 

As  for  the  other  incitement  to  officers  to  do  their 
duty  zealously,  there  is  no  such  thing.  We  who  com- 
mand the  armies  of  the  country,  and  who  are  expected 
to  make  exertions  greater  than  those  made  by  the  French 
armies,  to  march  to  fight,  and  to  keep  our  troops  in 
health  and  in  discipline,  have  not  the  power  of  reward- 
ing or  promising  a  reward  for  a  single  officer  of  the 
army  ;  and  we  deceive  ourselves,  and  those  who  are 
placed  under  us,  if  we  imagine  we  have  that  power,  or 
if  we  hold  out  to  them  that  they  shall  derive  any  advan- 
tage from  the  exertion  of  it  in  their  favour.  (2'0  Visct. 
Castlereagh.  Abrantes,  17th  June,  1809.) 

SPANISH  DIFFICULTIES. 

It  is  not  a  difficult  matter  for  a  gentleman  in  the  situa- 
tion of  Don  M.  de  Garay,  to  sit  down  in  his  cabinet 
and  write  his  ideas  of  the  glory  which  would  result  from 
driving  the  French  through  the  Pyrenees  ;  and  I  believe 
there  is  no  man  in  Spain  who  has  risked  so  much,  or 
who  has  sacrificed  so  much  to  effect  that  object,  as  I 
have.  But  I  wish  that  Don  M.  de  Garay,  or  the  gen- 
tlemen of  the  Junta,  before  they  blame  me  for  not  doing 


a8  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

more,  or  impute  to  me  beforehand  the  probable  conse- 
quences of  the  blunders  or  the  indiscretion  of  others, 
would  either  come  or  send  here  somebody  to  satisfy  the 
wants  of  our  half-starved  army,  which,  although  they 
have  been  engaged  for  two  days,  and  have  defeated  twice 
their  numbers,  in  the  service  of  Spain,  have  not  bread 
to  eat.  It  is  positively  a  fact,  that  during  the  last  seven 
days,  the  British  army  have  not  received  one-third  of 
their  provisions ;  that  at  this  moment  there  are  nearly 
4,000  wounded  soldiers  dying  in  the  hospital  in  this 
town  from  want  of  common  assistance  and  necessaries, 
which  any  other  country  in  the  world  would  have  given 
even  to  its  enemies ;  and  that  I  can  get  no  assistance  of 
any  description  from  the  country.  I  cannot  prevail 
upon  them  even  to  bury  the  dead  carcasses  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood, the  stench  of  which  will  destroy  themselves 
as  well  as  us.  (To  the  Eight  Hon.  J.  H.  Frere.  Tola- 
vera  de  la  Reyna,  Slst  July,  1809.) 

ENTHUSIASM. 

People  are  very  apt  to  believe  that  enthusiasm  car- 
ried the  French  through  their  revolution,  and  was  the 
parent  of  those  exertions  which  have  nearly  conquered 
the  world;  but  if  the  subject  is  nicely  examined,  it  will 
be  found,  that  enthusiasm  was  the  name  only,  but  that 
force  was  the  instrument  which  brought  forward  those 
great  resources  under  the  system  of  terror,  which  first 
stopped  the  allies ;  and  that  a  perseverance  in  the  same 
system  of  applying  every  individual  and  every  descrip- 
tion of  property  to  the  service  of  the  army  by  force,  has 
since  conquered  Europe.  (To  Visct.  Castlereagh.  Me- 
rida,  '25th  Aug.  1809.) 


SOLDIERS'    WORSHIP.  29 

SOLDIERS'  WORSHIP. 

.  .  .  The  soldiers  of  the  army  have  permission  to 
go  to  mass  so  far  as  this ;  they  are  forbidden  to  go  into 
the  churches  during  the  performance  of  Divine  service, 
unless  they  go  to  assist  in  the  performance  of  the  service. 
I  could  not  do  more,  for  in  point  of  fact,  soldiers  cannot 
by  law  attend  the  celebration  of  mass,  excepting  in  Ire- 
land. The  thing  now  stands  exactly  as  it  ought ;  any 
man  may  go  to  mass  who  chooses,  and  nobody  makes 
any  inquiry  about  it.  The  consequence  is  that  nobody 
goes  to  mass,  and  although  we  have  whole  regiments  of 
Irishmen,  and  of  course  Roman  Catholics,  I  have  not 
seen  one  soldier  perform  any  one  act  of  religious  wor- 
ship in  these  Catholic  countries,  excepting  making  the 
sign  of  the  cross  to  induce  the  people  of  the  country  to 
give  them  wine.  Although,  as  you  will  observe,  I  have 
no  objection,  and  they  may  go  to  mass  if  they  choose 
it,  I  have  great  objections  to  the  inquiries  and  interfer- 
ence of  the  priests  of  the  country  to  induce  them  to  go 
to  mass.  The  orders  were  calculated  to  prevent  all  in- 
trigue and  interference  of  that  description  ;  and  I  was 
very  certain  that  when  the  Irish  soldiers  were  left  to 
themselves  either  to  go  or  not,  they  would  do  as  their 
comrades  did,  and  not  one  of  them  would  be  seen  in  a 
church.  I  think  it  best  that  you  should  avoid  having 
any  further  discussion  with  the  priests  on  this  subject ; 
but  if  you  should  have  any,  it  would  be  best  that  you 
should  tell  them  what  our  law  is,  and  what  the  order  of 
this  army.  Prudence  may  then  induce  them  to  refrain 
from  taking  any  steps  to  induce  the  Roman  Catholic 
soldiers  to  attend  mass  ;  but  if  it  should  not,  and  their 
conduct  should  be  guided  by  religious  zeal,  I  acknow- 
ledge, that  however  indifferent  I  should  have  been  at 


3o  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

seeing  the  soldiers  flock  to  the  churches  under  my  orders, 
I  should  not  be  very  well  satisfied  to  see  them  filled  by 
the  influence  of  the  priests,  taking  advantage  of  the 
mildness  and  toleration  which  is  the  spirit  of  that  order. 
(To  the  Eight  Hon.  J.  Villiers.  Badajoz,  8tk  Sept.  1809.) 

ACCOMMODATION. 

.  .  .  Half  the  business  of  the  world,  particularly 
that  of  our  country,  is  done  by  accommodation  and  by 
the  parties  understanding  each  other  ;  but  when  rights 
are  claimed  they  must  be  resisted  if  there  are  no  grounds 
for  them  ;  when  appeal  must  be  made  to  higher  powers 
there  can  be  no  accommodation  ;  and  much  valuable 
time  is  lost  in  reference,  which  ought  to  be  spent  in 
action.  (To  the  Right.  Hon.  J.  Villiers.  (Badajoz, 
20th  Sept.  1809.) 

POPULAR  ASSEMBLIES. 

I  acknowledge  that  I  have  a  great  dislike  to  a  new 
popular  assembly.  Even  our  own  ancient  one  would  be 
quite  unmanageable,  and  in  these  days  would  ruin  us,  if 
the  present  generation  had  not  before  its  eyes  the  ex- 
ample of  the  French  Revolution ;  and  if  there  were  not 
certain  rules  and  orders  for  its  guidance  and  government, 
the  knowledge  and  use  of  which  render  safe,  and  suc- 
cessfully direct  its  proceedings.  (To  Marquis  Wettesley. 
Badajoz,  12nd  Sept.  1809.) 

AN    HONOURABLE    ACQUITTAL. 

It  is  difficult  and  needless  at  present  to  define  in  what 
cases  an  honourable  acquittal  by  a  Court  Martial  is  pe- 
culiarly applicable ;  but  it  must  appear  to  all  persons  to 
be  objectionable,  in  a  case  in  which  any  part  of  the  trans- 
action which  has  been  the  subject  of  investigation  before 


MILITAR  Y  ETIQ UETTE.  3 1 

the  Court  Martial,  is  disgraceful  to  the  character  of  the 
party  under  trial.  A  sentence  of  honourable  acquittal 
by  a  Court  Martial  should  be  considered  by  the  officers 
and  soldiers  of  the  army  as  a  subject  of  exultation  ;  but 
no  man  can  exult  in  the  termination  of  any  transaction, 
a  part  of  which  has  been  disgraceful  to  him.  And  al- 
though such  a  transaction  may  be  terminated  by  an 
honourable  acquittal  by  a  Court  Martial,  it  cannot  be 
mentioned  to  the  party  without  offence,  or  without  excit- 
ing feelings  of  disgust  in  others :  these  are  not  the  feel- 
ings which  ought  to  be  excited  by  the  recollection  and 
mention  of  a  sentence  of  honourable  acquittal.  (To 
Brig.-Gen.  Slade.  Lisbon,  12tk  Oct.  1809.) 

MILITARY  ETIQUETTE. 

I  who  have  arrived  pretty  nearly  at  the  top  of  the 
tree  should  be  the  last  man  to  give  up  any  points  of 
military  right  or  etiquette.  .  .  .  The  battle  of  Tala- 
vera  was  certainly  the  hardest  fought  of  modern  days, 
and  the  most  glorious  in  its  result  to  our  troops.  Each 
side  engaged  lost  a  quarter  of  its  numbers.  It  is 
lamentable  that  owing  to  the  miserable  inefficiency  of 
the  Spaniards,  to  their  want  of  exertion,  and  the  defi- 
ciency of  numbers  even  of  the  allies,  much  more  of  dis- 
cipline and  every  other  military  quality  when  compared 
with  the  enemy  in  the  Peninsula,  the  glory  of  the  action 
is  the  only  benefit  which  we  have  derived  from  it.  But 
that  is  a  solid  and  substantial  benefit  of  which  we  have 
derived  some  good  consequences  already ;  for  strange 
to  say  I  have  contrived  with  the  little  British  army 
to  keep  everything  in  check  since  the  month  of  August 
last ;  and  if  the  Spaniards  had  not  contrived  by  their 
own  folly,  and  against  my  entreaties  and  remonstrances, 


3i  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

to  lose  an  army  in  La  Mancha,  about  a  fortnight  ago,  I 
think  we  might  have  brought  them  through  the  contest. 
As  it  is,  however,  I  do  not  despair.  I  have  in  hand  a 
most  difficult  task,  from  which  I  may  not  extricate  my- 
self; but  I  must  not  shrink  from  it.  I  command  an 
unanimous  army ;  I  draw  well  with  all  the  authorities  in 
Spain  and  Portugal ;  and  I  believe  I  have  the  good 
wishes  of  the  whole  world.  In  such  circumstances  one 
may  fail,  but  it  would  be  dishonourable  to  shrink  from 
the  task.  (To  Col.  Malcolm.  Badajoz,  3rd  Dec.  1809.) 

THE  COMMON  COUNCIL  AND  WELLINGTON. 

.  .  .  I  see  that  the  Common  Council  of  the  city 
of  London  have  desired  that  my  conduct  shall  be  in- 
quired into ;  and  I  think  it  probable  that  the  answer 
which  the  King  will  give  to  this  address  will  be  con- 
sistent with  the  approbation  which  he  has  expressed  of 
the  acts  which  the  gentlemen  wish  to  make  the  subject 
of  inquiry ;  and  that  they  will  not  be  well  pleased.  I 
cannot  expect  mercy  at  their  hands,  whether  I  succeed 
or  fail ;  and  if  I  should  fail,  they  will  not  inquire  whether 
the  failure  is  owing  to  my  own  incapacity,  to  the  blame- 
less errors  to  which  we  are  all  liable,  to  the  faults  or 
mistakes  of  others,  to  the  deficiency  of  our  means,  to  the 
serious  difficulties  of  our  situation,  or  to  the  great  power 
and  abilities  of  our  enemy.  In  any  of  these  cases  I 
shall  become  their  victim ;  but  I  am  not  to  be  alarmed 
by  this  additional  risk,  and  whatever  may  be  the  con- 
sequences, I  shall  continue  to  do  my  best  in  this  country. 
(To  the  Earl  of  Liverpool.  Pombal,  2nd  June,  1810.) 

DEDICATION  SCRUPLES. 

.  .  .  I  have  no  objection  to  any  gentleman  dedi- 
cating to  me  his  work,  but  I  cannot  give  my  formal 


"LIKE  A   GENTLEMAN."  33 

sanction  to  his  doing  so,  without  reading  and  considering 
the  work,  and  seeing  whether  it  is  of  a  nature  to  deserve 
that  recommendation  to  the  public.  I  have  not  leisure 
for  this,  and  I  therefore  return  the  gentleman's  paper. 
(To  the  Right  Hon.  J.  Villiers.  Coimbra,  6th  Jan. 
1810.) 

WHAT  THE  HONOUR  AND  INTEREST  OF  THE  COUNTRY 
REQUIRE. 

.  .  .  I  conceive  that  the  honour  and  interests  of 
the  country  require  that  we  should  hold  our  ground  here 
as  long  as  possible ;  and  please  God,  I  will  maintain  it 
as  long  as  I  can  ;  and  I  will  neither  endeavour  to  shift 
from  my  own  shoulders  on  those  of  the  ministers  the 
responsibility  of  the  failure  by  calling  for  means  which 
I  know  they  cannot  give,  and  which,  perhaps,  would  not 
add  materially  to  the  facility  for  attaining  our  object; 
nor  will  I  give  to  the  ministers,  who  are  not  strong,  and 
who  must  feel  the  delicacy  of  their  own  situation,  an 
excuse  for  withdrawing  the  army  from  a  position  which, 
in  my  opinion,  the  honour  and  interest  of  the  country 
require  they  should  maintain  as  long  as  possible.  I 
tliink  that  if  the  Portuguese  do  their  duty,  I  shall  have 
enough  to  maintain  it ;  if  they  do  not,  nothing  that 
Great  Britain  can  afford  can  save  the  country ;  and  if 
from  that  cause  I  fail  in  saving  it,  and  am  obliged  to  go, 
I  shall  be  able  to  carry  away  the  British  army.  (To 
the  Right  Hon.  J.  Vittiers.  Viseu,  14th  Jan.  1810.) 

GOING  "  LIKE  A  GENTLEMAN." 

When  we  do  go,  I  feel  a  little  anxiety  to  go  like  gen- 
tlemen out  of  %the  hall  door,  particularly  after  the  pre- 


34  WORDS  OF   WELLINGTON. 

parations  I  have  made  to  enable  us  to  do  so,  and  not  out 
of  the  back  door,  or  by  the  area.  (7*0  the  Earl  of 
Liverpool.  Viseu,  2nd  April,  1810.) 

THE  AUSTRIAN  MARRIAGE. 

The  Austrian  marriage  is  a  terrible  event,  and  must 
prevent  any  great  movement  on  the  Continent  for  the 
present.  Still  I  do  not  despair  of  seeing  at  some  time 
or  other  a  check  to  the  Buonaparte  system.  Recent 
transactions  in  Holland  show  that  it  is  all  hollow  within, 
and  that  it  is  so  inconsistent  with  the  wishes,  the  in- 
terests, and  the  existence  of  civilized  society,  that  he 
cannot  trust  even  his  brothers  to  carry  it  into  execution. 
If  the  Spaniards  had  acted  with  common  prudence,  we 
should  be  in  a  very  different  situation  in  the  Peninsula, 
but  I  fear  there  are  now  no  hopes.  {To  Brig. -Gen.  R. 
Craufurd.  Viseu,  4th  April,  1810.) 

DESERTION. 

Till  lately  desertion  from  a  British  army  on  service 
was  a  crime  almost  unknown,  and  I  am  concerned  to 
add  that  I  have  reason  to  believe  that  many  of  those 
who  have  deserted  have  been  guilty  of  the  worst  descrip- 
tion of  that  offence,  and  have  gone  over  to  the  enemy.  I 
attribute  the  prevalence  of  this  crime  in  a  great  measure 
to  the  bad  description  of  men  of  which  many  of  the 
regiments  are  composed  almost  entirely,  and  who  have 
been  received  principally  from  the  Irish  militia.  .  .  . 
I  attribute  the  desertion  from  this  army  likewise  in  some 
degree  to  the  irregular  and  predatory  habits  which  those 
soldiers  had  acquired  who  having  straggled  from  their 
regiments  during  the  late  service  under  the  command  of 
Sir  J.  Moore,  were  some  of  them  taken  prisoners  by  the 


WAR  AN  EVIL.  35 

French,  and  have  since  escaped  from  them ;  and  others, 
after  having  wandered  in  different  parts  of  Portugal  and 
Spain,  have  returned  to  the  army.  All  these  men  have 
shifted  for  themselves  in  the  country  by  rapine  and 
plunder,  since  they  quitted  their  regiments  in  1808  ;  and 
they  have  informed  others  of  their  modes  of  proceeding, 
and  have  instilled  a  desire  in  others  to  follow  their  ex- 
ample, and  live  in  the  same  mode  and  by  the  same 
means,  free  from  the  restraints  of  discipline  and  regu- 
larity. (  To  the  Adjutant-  General  of  the  Forces.  Viseu, 
6th  April,  1810.) 

WAE. 

.  .  .  War  is  a  terrible  evil,  particularly  to  those 
who  reside  in  those  parts  of  the  country  which  are  the 
seat  of  the  operations  of  hostile  armies ;  but  I  believe  it 
will  be  found  upon  inquiry,  and  will  be  acknowledged 
by  the  people  of  Portugal,  that  it  is  inflicted  in  a  less 
degree  by  the  British  troops  than  by  the  others ;  and 
that  eventually  all  they  get  from  the  country  is  paid  for, 
and  that  they  require  only  what  is  necessary.  (T"o  Brig.- 
Gen.  Cox.  Celorico,  14th  May,  1810.) 

OFFICIAL  Discussions. 

.  .  .  I  conceive  that  a  part  of  my  business,  and 
perhaps  not  the  most  easy  part,  is  to  prevent  discussions 
and  disputes  between  the  officers  who  may  happen  to 
serve  under  my  command.  ( 1  "o  Brig.  -  Gen.  R.  Crau- 
furd.  Celorico,  '29th  May,  1810.) 

CLAIMS  FOR  PROMOTION. 

.  .  I  have  never  been  able  to  understand  the  prin- 
ciple on  which  the  claims  of  gentlemen  of  family,  fortune, 
and  influence  in  the  country,  to  promotion  in  the  army, 


36  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

founded  on  their  military  conduct  and  character  and 
services  should  be  rejected,  while  the  claims  of  others, 
not  better  founded  on  military  pretensions,  were  inva- 
riably attended  to.  It  would  be  desirable  certainly  that 
the  only  claim  to  promotion  should  be  military  merit ; 
but  this  is  a  degree  of  perfection  to  which  the  disposal 
of  military  patronage  has  never  been,  and  cannot  be,  I 
believe,  brought  in  any  military  establishment.  The 
commander-in-chief  must  have  friends,  officers  on  the 
staff  attached  to  him,  &c.,  who  will  press  him  to  promote 
their  friends  and  relations,  all  doubtless  very  meritorious, 
and  no  man  can  at  all  times  resist  these  applications ; 
but  if  there  is  to  be  any  influence  in  the  disposal  of 
military  patronage,  in  aid  of  military  merit,  can  there 
be  any  in  our  army  so  legitimate  as  that  of  family  con- 
nexion, fortune  and  influence  in  the  country.  .  .  . 
In  all  services  excepting  that  of  Great  Britain,  and  in 
former  times  in  the  service  of  Great  Britain,  the  Com- 
mander-in-Chief  of  an  army,  employed  against  the  enemy 
in  the  field,  had  the  power  of  promoting  officers,  at  least 
to  vacancies  occasioned  by  the  service,  in  the  troops 
under  his  own  command ;  and  in  Foreign  services  the 
principle  is  carried  so  far,  as  that  no  person  can  venture 
to  recommend  an  officer  for  promotion  belonging  to  an 
army  employed  against  the  enemy  in  the  field,  excepting 
the  Commander  of  that  army.  .  .  .  It  is  not  known 
to  the  army  and  to  strangers,  and  I  am  almost  ashamed 
of  acknowledging,  the  small  degree  (I  ought  to  say  nul- 
lity) of  power  of  reward  which  belongs  to  my  situation  ; 
and  it  is  really  extraordinary  that  I  have  got  on  so  well 
without  it ;  but  the  day  must  come  when  this  system 
must  be  altered.  (To  Lieut.-Col.  Torrens,  Military 
Secretary.  Celorico,  4th  Aug.  1810.) 


PUNISHMENT.  37 

NECESSITY  FOR  SECRECY. 

Officers  have  a  right  to  form  their  own  opinions  upon 
events  and  transactions;  but  officers  of  high  rank  or 
situation  ought  to  keep  their  opinions  to  themselves  ;  if 
they  do  not  approve  of  the  system  of  operations  of  their 
commander,  they  ought  to  withdraw  from  the  army. 
(To  Charles  Stuart,  Esq.  Gouvea,  Uth  Sept.  1810.) 

COLIN  CAMPBELL. 

In  respect  to  Colin  Campbell,  I  shall  add  that  you 
have  been  misinformed  or  I  am  much  mistaken.  Before 
I  came  to  Portugal  the  first  time,  the  Duke  of  York  pro- 
mised both  Lord  Wellesley  and  me  that  he  would  pro- 
mote him  to  be  a  Major,  in  answer  to  our  recommenda- 
tions solely  on  account  of  his  services.  ...  I  never 
intended  to  say  that  I  was  not  obliged  by  theCommander- 
in-Chief's  attention  to  the  claims  of  Colin  Campbell  to 
promotion ;  but  I  asserted,  and  with  due  submission  to 
superior  authority  must  maintain,  that  he  had  claims 
which,  independent  of  any  recommendation  of  mine, 
must  have  promoted  him.  (To  Lieut.- Col.  Torrens, 
Military  Secretary.  Gouvea,  I5tk  Sept.  1810.) 

PUNISHMENT. 

Many  of  the  assertions  of  these  persons  may  have  been 
perfectly  true,  although  imprudent  at  the  moment;  and 
I  must  say  that  I  think  it  is  not  just  in  the  Government 
to  punish  and  stigmatize  people  for  words  spoken  which 
are  only  imprudent.  .  .  .  That  which  is  required 
in  the  Government  is  to  punish  those  guilty  of  neglect 
and  malversation  in  office,  those  who  disobey  or  delay  to 
obey  orders,  and  those  who  neglect  or  delay,  or  omit  to 
perform  the  duty  of  their  situations.  (To  Dom.  M. 
Forjaz.  Busaco,  Itth  Sept.  1810.) 


38  WORDS   OF  WELLINGTON. 

TRANQUILLITY. 

All  I  ask  from  the  Portuguese  Government  is  tran- 
quillity in  the  town  of  Lisbon,  and  provisions  for  their 
ou-n  troops ;  and  as  God  Almighty  does  not  give  '  the 
race  to  the  swift,  or  the  battle  to  the  strong,'  and  I  have 
fought  battles  enough  to  know,  that  even  under  the  best 
arrangements,  the  result  of  any  one  is  not  certain,  I  only 
beg  that  they  will  adopt  preparatory  arrangements  to 
take  out  of  the  enemy's  way  those  persons  who  would 
suffer  if  they  were  to  fall  into  his  hands.  (To  Charles 
Stuart,  Esq.  Rio  Maior,  6th  Oct.  1810.) 

NATIONAL  DISEASE  OF  SPAIN. 

The  national  disease  of  Spain,  that  is,  boasting  of  the 
strength  and  power  of  the  Spanish  nation  till  they  are 
seriously  convinced  that  they  are  in  no  danger,  then  sit- 
ting down  quietly  and  indulging  their  national  indolence. 
(To  the  Right  Hon.  H.  Welleslcy.  Cartaxo,  2nd  Dec. 
1810) 

INFLUENCE  OF  NEWSPAPER  PARAGRAPHS. 

I  hope  that  the  opinions  of  the  people  in  Great  Bri- 
tain are  not  influenced  by  paragraphs  in  newspapers,  and 
that  those  paragraphs  do  not  convey  the  public  opinion 
or  sentiment  upon  any  subject.  Therefore  I  (who  have 
more  reason  than  any  public  man  of  the  present  day  to 
complain  of  libels  of  this  description)  never  take  the 
smallest  notice  of  them ;  and  have  never  authorized  any 
contradiction  to  be  given,  or  any  statement  to  be  made 
in  answer  to  the  innumerable  falsehoods,  and  the  heaps 
of  false  reasoning,  which  have  been  published  respecting 
me  and  the  operations  which  I  have  directed.  I  admit, 


THE  PORTUGUESE.  39 

however,  that  others  may  entertain  a  different,  opinion 
of  the  effect  of  these  libels,  and  that  they  may  not  have 
nerves  or  temper  to  hear  or  to  see  their  conduct  misre- 
presented and  their  actions  vilified ;  and  if  you  should 
not  be  convinced  that  these  paragraphs  have  made  no 
impression,  and  are  not  the  representation  of  the  public 
opinion  in  England,  I  have  no  objection  to  your  making 
any  use  you  think  proper  of  this  and  my  former  letters  ; 
and  you  may  be  assured  that  I  shall  be  happy  to  avail 
myself  of  every  opportunity  of  bearing  testimony  to  the 
zeal,  ability,  and  success,  with  which  the  duties  of  the 
medical  department  of  this  army  have  been  invariably 
carried  on  under  your  superintendence.  (To  Dr. 
Franck.  Cartaxo,  7th  Jan.  1811.) 

THE  PORTUGUESE. 

There  is  something  very  extraordinary  in  the  nature 
of  the  people  of  the  Peninsula.  I  really  believe  them, 
those  of  Portugal  particularly,  to  be  the  most  loyal  and 
best  disposed,  and  the  most  cordial  haters  of  the  French 
that  ever  existed ;  but  there  is  an  indolence  and  a  want 
even  of  the  power  of  exertion  in  their  disposition  and 
habits,  either  for  their  own  security,  that  of  their  country, 
or  of  their  allies,  which  baffle  all  our  calculations  and 
efforts.  (To  Charles  Stuart,  Esq.  Cartaxo,  16th  Jan. 
1811.) 

ANONYMOUS  LETTERS. 

.  .  .  Baron  Eben  has  made  some  curious  disco- 
veries at  Lisbon,  and  has  given  Mr.  Stuart  some  papers 
written  by  those  personages  (Principal  Sousa  and  the 
Bishop),  which  tend  to  show  their  folly  equally  with 
their  mischievous  dispositions.  Among  other  plans  they 
have  one  for  libelling  and  caricaturing  me  in  England. 


40  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

They  complain  that  you  and  I  have  had  hunting  parties  ! 
and  that  I  eat  a  good  dinner  at  Oporto  instead  of  pur- 
suing Soult :  I  have  this  day  discovered  that  some  of 
the  anonymous  letters  to  me  are  written  by  the  Principal, 
and  I  suspect  others  by  the  Bishop.  But  this  last  is  not 
quite  so  clear.  These  are  men  to  govern  a  nation  in 
difficult  circumstances.  (To  Marshal  Sir  W.  C.  Beres- 
ford,  K.B.  Cartaxo,  3rd  March,  1811. — 11  a.m.) 

LIBELLOUS  NONSENSE. 

I  return  Stockler's  paper,  which  I  have  not  had  leisure 
to  read.  The  Government  may  publish  any  nonsense 
they  please.  It  is  entirely  a  matter  of  indifference  to 
me ;  but  I  think  they  had  better  take  care  how  they  en- 
deavour to  set  the  people  of  the  country  against  those 
who  have  saved  them.  They  are  much  mistaken  if  they 
think  they  can  do  me  any  harm  by  such  nonsense,  or 
that  they  can  themselves  stand  for  a  moment  after  they 
shall  have  convinced  the  people  that  the  English,  and  I 
in  particular,  have  not  done  my  best  for  them.  You 
know  best  whether  these  opinions  can  be  brought  forth. 
I  am  entirely  indifferent  whether  they  can  or  not,  or 
what  becomes  of  Stockier  and  his  book.  (To  Charles 
Stuart,  Esq.  Lonzao,  16th  March,  1811.) 

CoBRESPONDENCE    OF    OFFICERS. 

...  I  am  sure  your  Lordship  does  not  expect  that 
I  or  any  other  officer  in  command  of  a  British  army, 
can  pretend  to  prevent  the  correspondence  of  the  officers 
with  their  friends.  It  could  not,  be  done  if  attempted, 
and  the  attempt  would  be  considered  an  endeavour  by 
an  individual  to  deprive  the  British  public  of  intelligence 
of  which  the  Government  and  Parliament  do  not  choose 


JUDGMENT.  41 

to  deprive  them.  I  have  done  everything  in  my  power 
by  way  of  remonstrance,  and  have  been  very  handsomely 
abused  for  it ;  but  I  cannot  think  of  preventing  officers 
from  writing  to  their  friends.  This  intelligence  must 
certainly  have  gone  from  some  officer  of  this  army,  by 
whom  it  was  confidentially  communicated  to  his  friends 
in  England ;  and  I  have  heard  that  it  was  circulated 
from  one  of  the  officers  with  a  plan.  {To  the  Earl  of 
Liverpool.  Lonzao,  16th  March,  1811.) 

SPANISH  CONDUCT  OF  MARCHES. 

The  conduct  of  the  Spaniards  throughout  this  expe- 
dition is  precisely  the  same  as  I  have  ever  observed  it 
to  be.  They  march  the  troops  night  and  day  without 
provisions  or  rest,  and  abusing  everybody  who  proposes 
a  moment's  delay  to  afford  either  to  the  famished  and 
fatigued  soldiers.  They  reach  the  enemy  in  such  a 
state  as  to  be  unable  to  make  any  exertion,  or  to  execute 
any  plan,  even  if  any  plan  had  been  formed ;  and  then, 
when  the  moment  of  action  arrives,  they  are  totally  in- 
capable of  movement,  and  they  stand  by  to  see  their 
allies  destroyed,  and  afterwards  abuse  them  because  they 
do  not  continue  unsupported  exertions  to  which  human 
nature  is  not  equal.  (To  Lieut.- General  Graham.  Sta. 
Marinha,  25th  March,  1811.) 

COOL  JUDGMENT. 

The  desire  to  be  forward  in  engaging  the  enemy  is 
not  uncommon  in  the  British  army ;  but  that  quality 
which  I  wish  to  see  the  officers  possess,  who  are  at  the 
head  of  the  troops,  is  a  cool,  discriminating  judgment 
in  action  which  will  enable  them  to  decide  with  promp- 
titude how  far  they  can  and  ought  to  go  with  propriety  ; 


42  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

and  to  convey  their  orders  and  act  with  such  vigour 
and  decision,  that  the  soldiers  will  look  up  to  them  with 
confidence  in  the  moment  of  action,  and  obey  them  with 
alacrity.  To  Major-General  Alex,  Campbell.  Villa 
Formosa,  15th  May,  1811.) 

INCREASED  DIFFICULTY  OF    POSITION. 

.  .  .  I  certainly  feel  every  day  more  and  more  the 
difficulty  of  the  situation  in  which  I  am  placed.  I  am 
obliged  to  be  everywhere,  and  if  absent  from  any  opera- 
tion something  goes  wrong.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the 
general  and  other  officers  of  the  army,  will  at  last  ac- 
quire that  experience  which  will  teach  them  that  success 
can  be  attained  only  by  attention  to  the  most  minute 
details ;  and  by  tracing  every  part  of  every  operation 
from  its  origin  to  its  conclusion,  point  by  point,  and 
ascertaining  that  the  whole  is  understood  by  those  who 
are  to  execute  it.  (To  the  Earl  of  Liverpool.  Villa 
Formosa,  15th  May,  1811.) 

DYING  OF  LOVE. 

.  .  .  We  read  occasionally  of  desperate  cases  of 
this  description,  but  I  cannot  say  that  I  have  ever  yet 
known  of  a  young  lady  dying  of  love.  They  contrive  in 
some  manner  to  live  and  look  tolerably  well,  notwith- 
standing their  despair  and  the  continued  absence  of  their 
lover ;  and  some  even  have  been  known  to  recover  so 
far  as  to  be  inclined  to  take  another  lover,  if  the  absence 
of  the  first  has  lasted  too  long.  I  don't  suppose  that 
your  protegee  can  ever  recover  so  far,  but  I  do  hope 
that  she  will  survive  the  continued  necessary  absence  of 


ORDERS.  43 

the  major,  and  enjoy  with  him  hereafter  many  happy 

days,1     (To .     Quinta  de  S.  Joao,  "27th  June, 

1811.) 

ANONYMOUS  LETTER-WRITING. 

To  send  an  anonymous  letter  to  anybody  is  to  accuse 
him  of  writing  it,  the  meanest  action  certainly  of  which 
any  man  can  be  guilty.  (To  his  Excellency  C.  Stuart. 
Quinta  de  S.  Joao,  1st  July,  1811.) 

THE  DELIVERY  or  ORDERS. 

.  .  .  What  the  troops  want  should  be  issued  to 
them  as  soon  as  it  reaches  the  regiments,  and  the  means 
of  conveyance  should  be  delivered  to  the  commissariat 
to  be  applied  to  other  purposes.  Obedience  to  this  order 
may  sometimes  be  attended  by  inconveniences,  but 
they  are  trifling  in  comparison  with  the  inconveniences 
which  all  would  suffer  from  a  disobedience  of  it.  (To 
Major-Gen.  R.  Craufurd.  Portalegre,  30th  July,  1811.) 

THE  MILITARY  CHARACTER  OF  THE  PORTUGUESE. 

.  .  .  The  people  of  Portugal  in  general  are  agricul- 
tiirists,  and  like  those  of  the  same  description  in  all  other 
countries,  are  very  little  disposed  to  military  service. 
As  I  have  before  stated  they  are  obliged  by  the  ancient 
law  of  their  country  to  serve,  otherwise,  I  believe,  that 
very  few  of  them  would  be  found  in  the  ranks,  and 
they  are  very  much  addicted  to  desertion  (not  to  the 
enemy)  in  their  own  country,  as  well  as  in  Spain.  In 
Lisbon  and  Oporto  some  recruits  might  be  got ;  but  to 
show  your  lordship  how  few,  I  may  mention  that  an 


1  The  major  afterwards  married  the  young  lady  who  was  dying 
of  love  for  him.  He  returned  to  the  army,  and  was  mortally 
wounded  at  the  battle  of  Vittoria. 


44  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

attempt  was  made,  under  the  patronage  of  the  present 
patriarch,  to  raise  the  Lusitanian  legion  by  enlistment, 
instead  of  by  conscription,  and  two  battalions  were  never 
completed  ;  and  their  losses  by  desertion  were  so  great, 
and  their  gains  by  recruiting  by  the  mode  of  enlistment 
so  small,  that  in  a  very  few  months  after  they  were 
raised  it  was  necessary  to  give  up  the  mode  of  recruit- 
ing by  enlistment,  and  to  allot  the  Lusitanian  legion  to 
one  of  the  provinces,  to  be  completed  with  recruits 
raised  within  the  same  by  conscription.  (To  the  Earl 
of  Liverpool.  Pedrogao,  4th  Aug.  1811.) 

ON  THE  SUBJECT  OF  FAVOURS  RECEIVED. 

I  have  just  received  your  letter  of  the  20th  July,  in 
which  you  apprise  me  of  the  impression  so  unfavourable 
to  me  in  a  certain  quarter,  from  my  having  omitted  to 
make  my  acknowledgments  of  the  support  I  had  received, 
and  particularly  for  having  been  allowed  to  recommend  a 
certain  number  of  officers  for  promotion.  .  .  You  were 
quite  correct  in  stating  that  I  had  expressed  my  acknow- 
ledgments to  the  office  whence  the  communication  had 
proceeded ;  and  if  reference  is  made  to  the  office  of  the 
commander-in-chief,  it  will  be  found  that  on  the  14th 
May  I  did  express  what  I  felt  upon  the  particular  sub- 
ject of  the  promotion  of  the  officers,  not  in  cold  terms. 
It  may  be  wrong  to  consider  public  arrangements  not  as 
matters  of  favour  to  any  individual,  and  therefore  not 
fit  subjects  for  the  acknowledgments  of  that  individual, 
and  at  all  events  I  don't  see  in  what  manner,  or  in  what 
terms,  an  individual  like  me  is  to  address  the  head  of 
the  nation  upon  such  an  occasion.  Even  if  I  had  received 
a  mark  of  personal  favour  I  should  doubt  the  propriety 
of  my  addressing  my  acknowledgments  direct  to  so  high 


OFFICERS.  45 

an  authority,  and  if  it  be  true  that  the  support  of  the 
war  in  the  Peninsula  is  a  public  arrangement,  I  should 
be  apt  to  consider  an  address  of  acknowledgment  from 
me  as  misplaced,  if  not  something  near  impertinence. 
.  .  I  hope  that  His  Royal  Highness  will  believe 
that  he  has  not  in  his  service  a  more  zealous  or  a  more 
faithful  servant  than  myself.  I  shall  serve  him  to  the 
best  of  my  ability  as  long  as  he  may  think  I  can  promote 
his  service ;  and  his  Royal  Highness  will  find  that  I  shall 
not  ask  for  his  favour  at  all  for  myself,  and  I  hope  not 
unreasonably  for  those  under  my  command  who  have  a 
right  to  expect  that  I  should  make  known  their  pre- 
tensions. ( To .  Penamacor,  6th  Aug.  1811.) 

WANT  OF  SPIRIT. 

The  instances  of  want  of  spirit  among  the  officers  are 
very  rare,  and  the  example  of  punishment  for  this  crime 
is  not  required.  This  being  the  case,  I  should  wish  to 
avoid  giving  the  soldiers  and  the  world  a  notion  that  an 
officer,  and  particularly  one  belonging  to  a  foreign  nation, 
can  behave  otherwise  than  well  in  the  presence  of  the 
enemy;  and  if  there  should  be  an  unfortunate  person  who 
fails  in  this  respect,  I  would  prefer  to  allow  him  to  retire 
to  a  private  station,  rather  than  expose  his  weakness. 
(To  H.S.H.  the  Duke  of  Brunswick.  Fuente  Guinaldo, 
29tk  Aug.  1811.) 

OFFICERS  REQUIRE  TO  BE  KEPT  IN  ORDER. 

I  must  also  observe  that  British  officers  re- 
quire to  be  kept  in  order,  as  well  as  the  soldiers  under 
their  command,  particularly  in  a  foreign  service.  The 
experience  which  I  have  had  of  their  conduct  in  the 
Portuguese  service  has  shown  me  that  there  must  be  an 


46  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

authority,  and  that  a  strong  one,  to  keep  them  within 
due  bounds ;  otherwise,  they  would  only  disgust  the  sol- 
diers over  whom  they  should  be  placed,  the  officers  whom 
they  should  be  destined  to  assist,  and  the  country  in 
whose  service  they  should  be  employed.  (To  the  Earl 
of  Liverpool,  Richvso,  1st  Oct.  1811.) 

MILITARY  CLOTHING. 

I  hear  that  measures  are  in  contemplation  to  alter  the 
clothing,  caps,  &c.,  of  the  army.  There  is  no  subject  of 
which  I  understand  so  little ;  and  abstractedly  speaking 
I  think  it  indifferent  how  a  soldier  is  clothed,  provided 
it  is  in  a  uniform  manner,  and  that  he  is  forced  to  keep 
himself  clean  and  smart,  as  a  soldier  ought  to  be.  But 
there  is  one  thing  I  deprecate,  and  that  is  any  imitation 
of  the  French  in  any  manner. 

It  is  impossible  to  form  an  idea  of  the  inconveniences 
and  injury  which  result  from  having  anything  like  them 
either  on  horseback  or  on  foot,  and  our  piquets  were 
taken  in  June  because  the  3rd  Hussars  had  the  same 
caps  as  the  French  chasseurs  a  cheval  and  some  of  their 
Hussars  ;  and  I  was  near  being  taken  on  the  25th  Sep- 
tember from  the  same  cause. 

At  a  distance,  or  in  action,  colours  are  nothing ;  the 
profile  and  shape  of  a  man's  cap  and  his  general  appear- 
ance are  what  guide  us ;  and  why  should  we  make  our 
people  look  like  the  French  ?  A  cocked  tailed  horse  is  a 
good  mark  for  a  dragoon,  if  you  can  get  a  good  side  view 
of  him ;  but  there  is  no  such  mark  as  the  English  helmet, 
and  as  far  as  I  can  judge,  it  is  the  best  cover  a  dragoon 
can  have  for  his  head.  I  mention  this  because  in  all 
probability  you  may  have  something  to  say  to  these 
alterations ;  and  I  only  beg  that  we  may  be  as  different 


TYRANNY  OF  NAPOLEON.  47 

as  possible  from  the  French  in  everything.  The  narrow 
top  caps  of  our  infantry,  as  opposed  to  their  broad  top 
caps,  are  a  great  advantage  to  those  who  are  to  look  at 
long  lines  of  posts  opposed  to  each  other.  ( To  Lieut- 
Col.  Torrens,  Military  Secretary.  Freueda,  6tk  Nov. 
1811.) 

BUONAPARTE'S  TYRANNY. 

I  have  long  considered  it  probable  that  even  we  should 
•witness  a  general  resistance  throughout  Europe  to  the 
fraudulent  and  disgusting  tyranny  of  Buonaparte  created 
by  the  example  of  what  has  passed  in  Spain  and  Por- 
tugal ;  and  that  we  should  be  actors  and  advisers  in 
these  scenes  ;  and  I  have  reflected  frequently  upon  the 
measures  which  should  be  pursued  to  give  a  chance  of 
success. 

Those  who  embark  in  projects  of  this  description 
should  be  made  to  understand,  or  to  act  as  if  they  under- 
stood, that  having  once  drawn  the  sword  they  must  not 
return  it  till  they  shall  have  completely  accomplished 
their  object.  They  must  be  prepared  and  must  be 
forced  to  make  all  sacrifices  to  the  cause.  Submission 
to  military  discipline  and  order  is  a  matter  of  course  ; 
but  when  a  nation  determines  to  resist  the  authority,  and 
to  shake  off  the  Government  of  Buonaparte,  they  must 
be  prepared  and  forced  to  sacrifice  the  luxuries  and 
comforts  of  life,  and  to  risk  all  in  a  contest  which,  it 
should  be  clearly  understood  before  it  is  undertaken, 
has  for  its  object  to  save  all  or  nothing. 

The  first  measure  for  a  country  to  adopt  is  to  form 
an  army  and  to  raise  a  revenue  from  the  people  to  defray 
the  expense  of  the  army.  Above  all,  to  form  a  Govern- 
ment of  such  strength  as  that  army  and  people  can  be 
forced  by  it  to  perform  their  duty.  This  is  the  rock 


43  WORDS   OF  WELLINGTON. 

upon  which  Spain  has  split,  and  all  our  measures  in  any 
other  country  which  should  afford  hopes  of  resistance  to 
Buonaparte  should  be  directed  to  avoid  it.  The  enthu- 
siasm of  the  people  is  very  fine  and  looks  well  in  print, 
but  I  have  never  known  it  produce  anything  but  con- 
fusion. In  France,  what  was  called  enthusiasm,  was 
power  and  tyranny,  acting  through  the  medium  of  popu- 
lar societies,  which  have  ended  by  overturning  Europe, 
and  establishing  the  most  powerful  and  dreadful  tyranny 
that  ever  existed.  In  Spain,  the  enthusiasm  of  the 
people  spent  itself  in  vivas  and  vain-boasting.  The  notion 
of  its  existence  prevented  even  the  attempt  to  discipline 
the  armies ;  and  its  existence  has  been  alleged  ever 
since  as  the  excuse  for  the  rank  ignorance  of  the 
officers,  and  the  indiscipline  and  constant  misbehaviour 
of  the  troops. 

I  therefore  earnestly  recommend  you,  wherever  you 
go,  to  trust  nothing  to  the  enthusiasm  of  the  people. 
Give  them  a  strong  and  a  just  and,  if  possible,  a  good 
Government ;  but  above  all,  a  strong  one,  which  shall 
enforce  them  to  do  their  duty  by  themselves  and  their 
country;  and  let  measures  of  finance  to  support  an 
army  go  hand  in  hand  with  measures  to  raise  it.  (To 
Lieut.-  Gen.  Lord  W.  Bentinck.  Freueda,  24th  Dec.  1811.) 

AZBUERA. 

The  battle  of  Albuera  was  fought  on  the  16th  May, 
on  the  ground  pointed  out.  That  which  was  most  con- 
spicuous in  the  battle  of  Albuera,  was  the  want  of  dis- 
cipline of  the  Spaniards.  These  troops  behaved  with 
the  utmost  gallantry,  but  it  was  hopeless  to  think  of 
moving  them.  In  the  morning  the  enemy  gained  an  em- 
inence which  commanded  the  whole  extent  of  the  line 
of  the  allies,  which  either  was  occupied  or  was  intended 


CIVIL  EDITING.  49 

to  be  occupied  by  the  Spanish  troops.  The  natural 
operation  would  have  been  to  re-occupy  this  ground  by 
means  of  the  Spanish  troops,  but  that  was  impossible. 
The  British  troops  were  consequently  moved  there; 
and  all  the  loss  sustained  by  those  troops  was  incurred 
ill  regaining  a  height,  which  ought  never  for  a  moment 
to  have  been  in  possession  of  the  enemy.  After  thi- 
battle  of  Albuera,  the  enemy  retired  leisurely  to  Llerena 
and  Guadalcanal.  (From  the.  Memorandum  of  Operation* 
in  1811.  Freueda,  31st  Dec.  1811.) 

CIVIL  EDITING  OF  MILITARY  MATTERS. 

The  license  to  publish  anything  upon  military  opera- 
tions, whether  true  or  not,  which  results  from  the  liberty 
of  the  press,  is  a  very  great  inconvenience,  particularly 
to  an  army  comparatively  small,  which  must  seize  op- 
portunities to  avail  itself  of  favourable  circumstances, 
&c.,  &c.  But  that  inconvenience  is  increased  tenfold 
when  a  military  official  body  publish  a  newspaper  con- 
taining statements  and  observations  upon  military  trans- 
actions. Any  editor  may  happen  to  stumble  upon  a  fact 
or  reasoning,  of  which  it  would  be  important  for  the 
enemy  to  have  information  ;  but  the  staff,  the  official 
editors,  must  be  supposed  to  have  the  information  which 
they  publish.  ( To  the  Right  Hon.  H.  Wellesley.  Freueda, 
9th  Feb.  1812.) 

SHRAPNEL'S  SHELLS. 

I  enclose  the  answer  which  I  have  received  from  Mar- 
shal Sir  W.  Beresford  on  the  reference  made  to  him  by 
your  Lordship's  desire,  respecting  the  value  of  the  sphe- 
rical case-shot  called,  "  Shrapnel's  Shells."  Since  I  wrote 
to  your  Lordship  on  that  subject,  I  have  heard  that  they 


So  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

have  been  very  destructive  to  the  enemy  in  Badajoz, 
when  thrown  from  24-pounder  carronades ;  and  I  have 
directed  that  some  of  them  may  be  loaded  with  musket- 
balls,  in  order  to  remedy  what  I  have  reason  to  believe 
is  a  material  defect  in  these  shells,  viz. — that  the  wounds 
which  they  inflict  don't  disable  the  person  who  receives 
them,  even  for  the  action  in  which  they  are  received. 
(To  the  Earl  of  Liverpool.  Camp  before  Badajoz,  3rd 
April,  1812.) 

GAULANTRY  OF  THOOPS. 

It  is  impossible  that  any  expressions  of  mine  can  con- 
vey to  your  Lordship  the  sense  which  I  entertain  of  the 
gallantry  of  the  officers  and  troops  upon  this  occasion. 
The  list  of  killed  and  wounded  will  show,  that  the  gene- 
ral officers,  the  staff  attached  to  them,  the  commanding 
and  other  officers  of  the  regiments  put  themselves  at  the 
head  of  the  attacks  which  they  severally  directed,  and 
set  the  example  of  gallantry  which  was  so  well  followed 
by  their  men.  (To  the  Earl  of  Liverpool.  Camp  before 
Badajoz,  7th  April,  1812.) 

FOREIGN  NOTIONS  OF  BRITISH  INVINCIBILITY. 

The  Spanish  nation  and  troops,  particularly  the  com- 
mon soldiers,  entertain  an  opinion  that  our  soldiers  are 
invincible;  and  that  it  is  only  necessary  that  they  should 
appear  in  order  to  insure  success;  and  they  are  so 
ignorant  of  the  nature  of  a  military  operation  that  they 
attribute  our  refraining  from  interfering  upon  many  oc- 
casions, to  disinclination  to  the  cause,  and  frequently  to 
the  want  of  the  requisite  military  qualities  in  the  gene- 
ral officer  who  directs  our  operations.  ( To  Major-Gen. 
Cooke.  Fuente  Guinaldo,  1812.) 


GALLOPING    CAVALRY.  51 

FOUNDATION  OF  DISCIPLINE. 

The  foundation  of  every  system  of  discipline  which 
has  for  its  object  the  prevention  of  crimes,  must  be  the 
non-commissioned  officers  of  the  army.  (To  the  Earl 
of  Liverpool.  Fue?ite  Guinaldo,  IQth  June,  1812.) 

GALLOPING  CAVALRY. 

I  have  never  been  more  annoyed  than  by \s 

affair,  and  I  entirely  concur  with  you  in  the  nece^itv 
of  inquiring  into  it.  It  is  occasioned  entirely  by  the 
trick  our  officers  of  cavalry  have  acquired  of  galloping 
at  everything,  and  their  galloping  back  as  fast  as  they 
gallop  on  the  enemy.  They  never  consider  their  situa- 
tion ;  never  think  of  manoeuvring  before  an  enemy  ;  so 
little  that  one  would  think  they  cannot  manoeuvre  ex- 
cepting on  Wimbledon  Common,  and  when  they  use  their 
arm  as  it  ought  to  be  used,  viz.  offensively,  they  never 
keep  nor  provide  for  a  reserve. 

All  cavalry  should  charge  in  two  lines,  one  of  which 
should  be  in  reserve  ;  if  obliged  to  charge  in  one  line, 
at  least  one-third  should  be  ordered  beforehand  to  pull 
up  and  form  in  second  line,  as  soon  as  the  charge  should 
be  given,  and  the  enemy  has  been  broken  and  has  retired. 
(To  Lieut.- Gen.  Sir  It.  Hill,  K.B.  Salamanca,  18th 
June,  1812.) 

PUBLIC  CREDIT. 

When  a  nation  is  desirous  of  establishing  public  eredit, 
or  in  other  words,  of  inducing  individuals  to  confide 
their  property  to  its  government,  they  must  begin  by 
acquiring  a  revenue  equal  to  their  fixed  expenditure  ; 
and  they  must  manifest  an  inclination  to  be  honest,  by 


5z  WORDS   OF   WELLIXGTOX. 

performing  their  engagements  in  respect  to  their  debts. 
(To  His  Excellency  C.  Stuart.  Salamanca,  25th  June, 
1812.) 

THE  COMMISSARIAT. 

The  commissariat  is  a  public  department  under  the 
particular  charge  and  direction  of  the  commissary  ge- 
neral and  his  officers  ;  and  no  officer  of  the  army,  be  his 
rank  what  it  may,  has  a  right  as  a  matter  of  course  to 
interfere  in  its  duties.  I  don't  mean  to  say  that  the  ge- 
neral officers  and  their  staff  are  not  to  superintend  the 
performance  of  their  duties  by  the  officers  of  all  the  de- 
partments of  the  army  attached  to  the  particular  divi- 
sion of  troops  placed  under  their  command ;  but  the  duty 
of  a  general  and  his  staff  in  respect  to  these  departments 
is  confined  to  superintendence ;  he  cannot  give  direc- 
tions because  he  is  not  responsible  for  the  performance 
of  the  duty  of  the  department,  and  when  his  interference 
goes  beyond  superintendence,  he  is  liable  to  be  thrown 

upon  his  own  justification.    (To .    Rueda,  7th 

July,  1812.) 

SALAMANCA. 

I  hope  that  you  will  be  pleased  with  our  battle  (Sala- 
manca). There  was  no  mistake ;  everything  went  on  as 
it  ought ;  and  there  never  was  an  army  so  beaten  in  so 
short  a  time.  If  we  had  had  another  hour  or  two  of  day- 
light not  a  man  would  have  passed  the  Tormes ;  and  as 
it  was  they  would  all  have  been  taken  if  Don  Carlos  de 
Espana  had  left  the  garrison  in  Alba  de  Tormes  as  I 
wished  and  desired ;  or  having  taken  it  away,  as  I  believe 
before  he  was  aware  of  my  wishes,  he  had  informed  me 
that  it  was  not  there.  If  he  had  I  should  have  marched 
in  the  night  upon  Alba  where  I  should  have  caught  them 


SPANISH  ENERGY.  53 

all,  instead  of  upon  the  fords  of  the  Tormes.  But  this 
is  a  little  misfortune  which  does  not  diminish  the  honour 
acquired  by  the  troops  in  the  action,  nor  I  hope  the  ad- 
vantage to  be  derived  from  it  by  the  country  ;  as  I  don't 
believe  there  are  many  soldiers  who  were  in  that  action 
who  are  likely  to  face  us  again  till  they  shall  be  very 
largely  re-infbrced  indeed.  (Jo  Earl  Bathurst.  Flares 
de  Avila,  24th  July,  1812.) 

THE  SPANISH  AND  FRANCE. 

It  is  impossible  to  describe  the  joy  manifested  by  the 
inhabitants  of  Madrid  upon  our  arrival,  and  I  hope  that 
the  prevalence  of  the  same  sentiments  of  detestation  of 
the  French  yoke,  and  of  a  strong  desire  to  secure  the 
independence  of  their  country,  which  first  induced  them 
to  set  the  example  of  resistance  to  the  usurper,  will  in- 
duce them  again  to  make  exertions  in  the  cause  of  their 
country,  which,  being  more  wisely  directed,  will  be  more 
efficacious  than  those  formerly  made.  (  To  Earl  Bathurst. 
Madrid,  13th  Aug.  1812.) 

SPANISH  ENERGY. 

I  don't  expect  much  from  the  exertions  of  the  Span- 
iards notwithstanding  all  that  we  have  done  for  them. 
They  cry  viva  and  are  very  fond  of  us  and  hate  the 
French ;  but  they  are  in  general  the  most  incapable  of 
useful  exertion  of  all  the  nations  that  I  have  known ; 
the  most  vain,  and  at  the  same  time  the  most  ignorant, 
particularly  of  military  affairs,  and  above  all  of  military 
affairs  in  their  own  country.  I  can  do  nothing  till  Gene- 
ral Castanos  shall  arrive,  and  I  don't  know  where  he  is. 
I  am  afraid  that  the  utmost  we  can  hope  for  is,  to  teach 


54  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON'. 

them  how  to  avoid  being  beat.  If  we  can  effect  that 
object,  I  hope  we  might  do  the  rest.  (To  Earl  Bathurst. 
Madrid,  ISth  June,  1812.) 

OPINIONS  ON  WITHDRAWAL  FROM  SPAIN. 

If  for  any  cause  I  should  be  overpowered  or  should 
be  obliged  to  retire,  what  will  the  world  say  ?  What 
will  the  people  of  England  say  ?  What  will  those  in 
Spain  say  ?  That  we  had  made  a  great  effort  attended 
by  some  glorious  circumstances  ;  and  that  from  January 
1812,  we  had  gained  more  advantages  for  the  cause,  and 
had  acquired  more  extent  of  territory  by  our  operations, 
than  had  ever  been  gained  by  any  army  in  the  same  pe- 
riod of  time,  against  so  powerful  an  enemy  ;  but  that  be- 
ing unaided  by  the  Spanish  officers  and  troops,  not  from 
disinclination,  but  from  inability  on  account  of  the  gross 
ignorance  of  the  former,  and  the  want  of  discipline  of 
the  latter,  and  from  the  inefficiency  of  all  the  persons 
selected  by  the  Government  for  great  employment,  we 
were  at  last  overpowered,  and  compelled  to  withdraw 
within  our  own  frontier.  (To  the  Right  Hon.  Sir  H. 
Wettesley,  K.B.  Madrid,  23rd  Aug.  1812. 

PROCLAMATION. 

Spaniards  !  it  is  unnecessary  to  take  up  your  time  by 
recalling  to  your  recollection  the  events  of  the  last  two 
months,  or  by  drawing  your  attention  to  the  situation  in 
which  your  enemies  now  find  themselves.  Listen  to  the 
accounts  of  the  numerous  prisoners  daily  brought  in,  and 
deserters  from  their  army ;  hear  the  details  of  the  mise- 
ries endured  by  those  who,  trusting  to  the  promises  of 
the  French,  have  followed  the  vagabond  fortunes  of  the 
usurper,  driven  from  the  capital  of  your  monarchy  ; 
hear  these  details  from  their  servants  and  followers,  who 


HOXOf'BS.  55 

liave  had  the  sense  to  quit  this  scene  of  desolation,  and 
if  the  sufferings  of  your  oppressors  can  soften  the  feeling 
of  those  inflicted  upon  yourselves,  you  will  find  ample 
cause  for  consolation. 

But  much  remains  still  to  be  done  to  consolidate  and 
secure  the  advantages  acquired.  It  should  be  clearly 
understood  that  the  pretended  king  is  a  usurper,  whose 
authority  it  is  the  duty  of  every  Spaniard  to  resist;  that 
every  Frenchman  is  an  enemy,  against  whom  it  is  the 
duty  of  every  Spaniard  to  raise  his  arm. 

Spaniards !  you  are  reminded  that  your  enemies  can- 
not much  longer  resist ;  that  they  must  quit  your  country 
if  you  will  only  omit  to  supply  their  demands  for  provi- 
sions and  money,  when  those  demands  are  not  enforced 
by  superior  force.  Let  every  individual  consider  it  his 
duty  to  do  everything  in  his  power,  to  give  no  assistance 
to  the  enemy  of  his  country,  and  that  perfidious  enemy 
must  soon  entirely  abandon  in  disgrace  a  country  which 
he  entered  only  for  the  sake  of  plunder  and  in  which  he 
has  been  enabled  to  remain  only  because  the  inhabitants 
have  submitted  to  his  mandates,  and  supplied  his  wants. 

Spaniards  !  Resist  this  odious  tyranny,  and  be  inde- 
pendent and  happy.  (Madrid,  *29th  Aug.  1812.) 

HOXOCES. 

I  shall  receive  with  gratitude  any  honour  which  His 
Royal  Highness  may  think  proper  to  confer  upon  me, 
but  the  addition  proposed  to  my  arms  is  the  last  which 
would  have  occurred  to  me.  It  carries  with  it  an  ap- 
pearance of  ostentation,  of  which  I  hope  I  am  not  guilty; 
and  it  will  scarcely  be  credited  that  I  did  not  apply 
for  it.  (To  Earl  Bathurst.  Valladolid,  18th  Sept.  1812.) 


5 6  WORDS   OF  WELLINGTON. 

SOLDIERS'  COMPLAINTS. 

It  is  a  great  error  to  suppose  that  the  lower  orders 
are  always  right  in  their  complaints,  and  the  higher  or- 
ders always  in  the  wrong.  My  experience  has  taught 
me  that  nine  times  in  ten,  the  soldiers  loudest  in  their 
complaints  and  claims,  have  no  ground  for  either  the 
one  or  the  other,  and  are  generally  in  debt  to  their 
captains.  There  is  no  point  in  the  service  to  which  I 
have  at  all  times  paid  so  much  attention  as  to  the  settle- 
ment of  the  soldiers'  accounts ;  I  consider  early  settle- 
ments to  be  essential  to  discipline.  (To  Col.  Torreris, 
Military  Secretary.  Torquemada,  l'3th  Sept.  1812.) 

AN  ESTATE  IN  ENGLAND. 

When  the  Prince  Regent  promoted  me  in  the  peerage 
last  Spring,  and  made  an  addition  to  my  pension,  I  de- 
termined for  the  sake  of  my  sons  to  lay  out  all  the  money 
I  had  in  the  purchase  of  land  in  Great  Britain,  and  I 
directed  that  inquiries  might  be  made  for  a  suitable  pur- 
chase for  me.  I  likewise  intend  to  lay  out  in  the  same 
manner  the  sum  of  money  which  His  Royal  Highness 
has  declared  his  intention  to  recommend  to  Parliament 
to  grant  me.  The  inquiries  which  have  been  made, 
have  not  hitherto  produced  any  favourable  result,  and  I 
could  not  make  any  purchase  with  which  I  should  be  so 
well  satisfied  as  that  on  which  you  have  written  to  me. 
I  am  ready,  therefore,  to  pay  the  money  as  soon  as  I  shall 
receive  your  answer  to  this  letter.  I  am  rather  inclined, 
however,  to  wish  to  receive  the  estate  and  manor  as  a 
gift  from  the  public  as  part  of  the  £100,000  if  your 
Lordship  should  see  no  objection ;  but  if  there  should 
be  any,  I  shall  be  too  happy  to  make  the  purchase  out  of 
my  private  funds. 


THE   CAMPAIGN  REVIEWED.  57 

While  writing  upon  this  subject  it  occurs  to  me  that 
as  I  propose  to  lay  out  all  the  money  which  the  public 
will  grant  me  in  the  purchase  of  land  in  Great  Britain, 
it  would  save  me  some  trouble,  and  might  probably  be 
more  advantageous  to  the  public,  if  the  value  were 
granted  in  land.  However,  I  suggest  this  to  your  lord- 
ship to  be  attended  to  only  in  case  there  should  be  no 
objections.  {To  the  Earl  of  Liverpool,  First  Lord  of  the 
Treasury.  Revilla,  15th  Sept.  1812.) 

THE  EFFECT  OF  THE  REVOLUTION  IN  SPAIN. 

It  is  extraordinary  that  the  revolution  in  Spain  should 
not  have  produced  one  man  with  any  knowledge  of  the 
real  situation  of  the  country.  It  really  appears  as  if  they 
were  all  drunk,  and  thinking  and  talking  of  any  other 
subject  but  Spain.  How  it  is  to  end  God  knows  !  (To 
the  Right  Hon.  Sir  H.  Wellesley,  K.B.  Rueda,  1st  Nov. 
1812.) 

A  KIND  LETTER. 

I  was  very  sorry  that  you  fell  the  victim  of  great  and 
persevering  indiscretion,  and  misapplication  of  very  good 
talents ;  and  I  am  happy  to  find  that  you  are  sensible  of 
your  error,  and  desirous  of  beginning  your  career  again, 
with  a  determination  to  avoid  the  conduct  in  future 

which  has  occasioned  your  misfortunes.  (To ,  Esq., 

late  Lieut. Dragoons.     Cuidad  Rodrigo,  2Ist  Nov. 

1812.) 

REVIEW  OF  THE  CAMPAIGN. 

From  what  I  see  in  the  newspapers  I  am  much  afraid 
that  the  public  will  be  disappointed  at  the  result  of  the 
last  campaign,  notwithstanding  that  it  is  in  fact  the  most 
successful  campaign  in  all  its  circumstances,  and  has 


58  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

produced  for  the  cause  more  important  results  than  any 
campaign  in  which  a  British  army  has  been  engaged  for 
the  last  century.  We  have  taken  by  siege  Cuidad  Rod- 
rigo,  Badajoz,  and  Salamanca;  and  the  Retire  surren- 
dered. In  the  meantime  the  allies  have  taken  Astorga, 
Guadalacara,  and  Consuegra,  besides  other  places  taken 
by  Duran  and  Sir  H.  Popham.  In  the  months  elapsed 
since  January  this  army  has  sent  to  England  little  short 
of  20,000  prisoners,  and  they  have  taken  and  destroyed, 
or  have  themselves  the  use  of  the  enemy's  arsenals  in 
Cuidad  Rodrigo,  Badajoz,  Salamanca,  Valladolid,  Madrid. 
Astorga,  Seville,  the  lines  before  Cadiz,  &c. ;  and  upon 
the  whole  we  have  taken  and  destroyed,  or  we  now  possess 
little  short  of  3,000  pieces  of  cannon.  The  siege  of 
Cadiz  has  been  raised,  and  all  the  countries  south  of  the 
Tagus  have  been  cleared  of  the  enemy.  .  .  .  The 
fault  of  which  I  was  guilty  in  the  expedition  to  Burgos 
was,  not  that  I  undertook  the  operation  with  inadequate 
means,  but  that  I  took  there  the  most  inexperienced, 
instead  of  the  best  troops.  I  left  at  Madrid  the  3rd, 
4th,  and  light  divisions,  who  had  been  with  myself 
always  before,  and  I  brought  with  me  all  that  were  good, 
the  1st  division,  and  they  were  inexperienced.  In  fact, 
the  troops  ought  to  have  carried  the  exterior  line  by 
escalade  on  the  first  trial  on  the  22nd  September, 
and  if  they  had  we  had  means  sufficient  to  take  the 

place.     They  did  not  take  the  line  because ,  the 

field  officer  who  commanded,  did  that  which  is  too  com- 
mon in  our  army.  He  paid  no  attention  to  his  orders, 
notwithstanding  the  pains  I  took  in  writing  them,  and 
in  reading  and  explaining  them  to  him  twice  over. 
He  made  none  of  the  dispositions  ordered ;  and  instead 
of  regulating  the  attack  as  he  ought,  he  rushed  on  as 
if  he  had  been  the  leader  of  a  forlorn  hope,  and  fell 


59 

together  with  many  of  those  who  went  with  him.  He 
had  my  instructions  in  his  pocket;  and  if  the  Frencli 
got  possession  of  his  body,  and  were  made  acquainted 
with  the  plan,  the  attack  could  never  be  repeated. 
When  he  fell,  nobody  having  received  orders  what  to 
do,  nobody  could  give  any  to  the  troops.  I  was  in  the 
trenches,  however,  and  ordered  them  to  withdraw. 
Our  time  and  ammunition  were  then  expended,  and  our 
guns  destroyed  in  taking  this  line,  than  which  at  former 
su'iri.'s  we  had  taken  many  stronger  by  assault. 

I  see  that  a  disposition  already  exists  to  blame  the 
Government  for  the  failure  of  the  siege  of  Burgos.  The 
Government  had  nothing  to  say  to  the  siege.  It  wa> 
entirely  my  own  act.  In  regard  to  means,  there  were 
ample  means,  both  at  Madrid  and  at  Santander,  for  the 
siege  of  the  strongest  fortress.  That  which  was  wanting 
at  both  places  was  means  of  transporting  ordnance  and 
military  stores  to  the  place  where  it  was  desirable  to 
use  them.  The  people  of  England,  so  happy  as  they  are 
in  every  respect,  so  rich  in  resources  of  every  descrip- 
tion, having  the  use  of  such  excellent  roads,  &c.,  will  not 
readily  believe  that  important  results  here  frequently 
depend  upon  fifty  or  sixty  mules,  more  or  less,  or  a  few 
bundles  of  straw  to  feed  them ;  but  the  fact  is  so.  ( To 
the  Earl  of  Liverpool.  Cuidad  Rodrigo,  23rd  jVoc.  1812.) 

DISCIPLINE. 

The  discipline  of  every  army,  after  a  long  and  active 
campaign,  becomes  in  some  degree  relaxed,  and  requires 
the  utmost  attention  on  the  part  of  the  general  and 
other  officers  to  bring  it  back  to  the  state  in  which  it 
ought  to  be  for  service ;  but  I  am  concerned  to  have  to 
observe  that  the  army  under  my  command  has  fallen  off 
in  this  respect  in  the  late  campaign  to  a  greater  extent 


60  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

than  any  army  with  which  I  have  ever  served,  or  of  which 
I  have  ever  read.  Yet  this  army  has  met  with  no  dis- 
aster ;  it  has  suffered  no  privations  which  but  trifling 
attention  on  the  part  of  the  officers  could  not  have  pre- 
vented, and  for  which  there  existed  no  reason  whatever 
in  the  nature  of  the  service ;  nor  has  it  suffered  any 
hardships  excepting  those  resulting  from  the  necessity  of 
being  exposed  to  the  inclemencies  of  the  weather  at  a 
moment  when  they  were  most  severe.  .  .  .  We  must 
therefore  look  for  the  existing  evils  and  for  the  situation 
in  which  we  now  find  the  army,  to  some  cause  besides 
those  resulting  from  the  operations  in  which  we  have 
been  engaged. 

I  have  not  hesitation  in  attributing  these  evils  to  the 
habitual  inattention  of  the  officers  of  the  regiments  to 
their  duty,  as  prescribed  by  the  standing  regulations  of 
the  service,  and  by  the  orders  of  the  army. 

I  am  far  from  questioning  the  zeal,  still  less  the  gal- 
lantry and  spirit  of  the  officers  of  the  army,  and  I  am 
quite  certain  that  if  their  minds  can  be  convinced  of 
the  necessity  of  minute  and  constant  attention  to  un- 
derstand, recollect,  and  carry  into  execution  the  orders 
which  have  been  issued  for  the  performance  of  their 
duty,  and  that  the  strict  performance  of  this  duty  is 
necessary  to  enable  the  army  to  serve  the  country  as  it 
ought  to  be  served,  they  will  in  future  give  their  atten- 
tion to  these  points. 

Unfortunately  the  inexperience  of  the  officers  of  the 
army  has  induced  many  to  consider  that  the  period  during 
which  an  army  is  on  service  is  one  of  relaxation  from  all 
rule  instead  of  being,  as  it  is,  the  period  during  which  of 
all  others  every  rule  for  the  regulation  and  control  of  the 
conduct  of  the  soldier,  for  the  inspection  and  care  of  his 
arms,  ammunition,  accoutrements,  necessaries  and  field 


CHANGE  OF  OFFICERS.  61 

equipments,  and  his  horse  and  horse  appointments ;  for 
the  receipt  and  issue  and  care  of  his  provisions,  and  the 
regulation  of  all  that  belongs  to  his  food  and  the  forage 
for  his  horse,  must  be  most  strictly  attended  to  by  the 
officers  of  his  company  or  troop,  if  it  is  intended  that  an 
army,  a  British  army  in  particular,  shall  be  brought  into 
the  field  of  battle  in  a  state  of  efficiency  to  meet  the 
enemy  on  the  day  of  trial.  {To  Officers  Commanding 
Divisions  and  Brigades.  Freueda,  28th  Nov.  1812.) 

INCONVENIENCES  ARISING  FROM  CHANGE  OF  OFFICERS. 

I  have  frequently  mentioned  to  you  the  great  incon- 
venience which  I  felt  from  the  constant  change  of  officers 
in  charge  of  every  important  department,  or  filling  every 
situation  of  rank  or  responsibility  with  this  army.  No 
man  can  be  aware  of  the  extent  of  this  inconvenience 
who  has  not  got  this  great  machine  to  keep  in  order  and 
to  direct,  and  together  with  the  British  army,  the  Spanish 
and  Portuguese  concerns,  the  labour  which  these  con- 
stant changes  occasion  is  also  of  the  most  distressing  de- 
scription. No  sooner  is  an  arrangement  made,  the  order 
given,  and  the  whole  in  a  train  of  execution,  than  a 
gentleman  comes  out  who  has  probably  but  little  know- 
ledge of  the  practical  part  of  his  duty  in  any  country, 
and  none  whatever  in  this  most  difficult  of  all  scenes  of 
military  operation.  Nobody  in  the  British  army  ever 
reads  a  regulation  or  an  order  as  if  it  were  to  be  a  guide 
for  his  conduct,  or  in  any  other  manner  than  as  an  amu- 
sing novel,  and  the  consequence  is,  that  when  complicated 
arrangements  are  to  be  carried  into  execution  (and  in 
this  country  the  poverty  of  its  resources  renders  them 
all  complicated),  every  gentleman  proceeds  according  to 
his  fancy  ;  and  then,  when  it  is  found  that  the  arrange- 
ment fails  (as  it  must  fail  if  the  order  is  not  strictly 


6z  WORDS   OF  WELLIXGTON. 

obeyed)  they  come  upon  me  to  set  matters  to  rights,  and 
thus  my  labour  is  increased  tenfold.  {To  Col.  Torrens, 
Military  Secretary.  Freueda,  Qth  Dec.  1812.) 

INDEPENDENT  AUTHORITIES. 

Experience  has  shown,  that,  wherever  there  exist  au- 
thorities independent  of  each  other,  they  must  clash  and 
the  service  must  suffer,  unless  their  acts  should  be  vigi- 
lantly controlled  by  the  superintending  authority  of  the 
Government.  I  shall  not  contend  for  the  expediency  of 
the  contrary  practice  in  a  well-regulated  state,  but  it 
cannot  be  expected  that  any  province  of  Spain  should  be 
in  a  state  fit  to  be  governed  according  to  the  best  prin- 
ciple, viz.  the  separation  of  the  local  authorities.  Even  in 
countries  where  these  systems  and  principles  are  per- 
fectly understood,  and  have  been  put  in  practice  for 
centuries,  and  of  which  the  tranquillity  has  not  lately  been 
disturbed  by  a  foreign  enemy,  it  has  frequently  been 
necessary  to  place  the  military  and  political  authority  in 
one  hand.  How  much  more  necessary,  therefore,  must 
it  be  in  provinces  just  recovered  from  the  usurpation  of 
the  enemy,  in  which  the  authority  of  the  Government  is 
imperfectly  established,  with  which  the  Government  has 
but  little  if  any  communication,  to  provide  against  the 
clashing  of  independent  authorities  in  the  administration 
of  the  local  affairs?  (To  the  Minister  at  War.  Cadiz, 
27th  Dec.  1812.) 

SECOND  IN  COMMAND. 

I  am  glad  that  your  ideas  and  mine  agree  about  your 
military  situation.  It  is  certain  that  Government  have 
always  thought  it  necessary  to  have  an  officer  here,  se- 
lected by  them  to  succeed  to  the  command,  in  case  I 
should  be  deprived  of  it ;  and  there  are  some  of  the  Go- 


INCAPABLE  OFFICERS.  63 

vernment  so  partial  to  old  practice  and  precedent,  that 
they  don't  like  a  departure  from  either,  in  not  calling 
this  officer  second  in  command.  This  officer  might  have 
been  very  useful  in  the  days  of  councils  of  war,  &c. ;  it 
may  look  well  in  a  newspaper  to  see  that  such  a  general 
officer  is  "  second  in  command."  But  there  is  nobody 
in  a  modern  army  who  must  not  see  that  there  is  no  duty 
for  the  second  in  command  to  perform,  and  that  this 
office  is  useless.  It  is  at  the  same  time  inconvenient,  as 
it  gives  the  holder  pretensions  which  can't  be  gratified 
except  at  the  public  inconvenience.  (To  Marshal  Sir 
W.  C.  Beresford,  K.B.  Freueda,  10th  Dec.  1812.) 

OLD  SOLDIERS  AND  RAW  RECRUITS. 

Experience  has  shown  us  in  the  Peninsula,  that  a  sol- 
dier who  has  got  through  one  campaign  is  of  more  service 
than  two,  or  even  three,  newly  arrived  from  England ;  and 
this  applies  to  the  cavalry  equally  with  every  other 
description  of  troops.  (To  H.R.H.  the  Commander-in- 
Chief.  Cadiz,  26th  Dec.  1812.) 

REMOVAL  OP  INCAPABLE  OFFICERS. 

I  don't  exactly  comprehend  that  part  of  your  letter 

which  relates  to  the  removal  of , , 

, ,  and ,  from  this  country.     I 

don't  understand  what  responsibility  attaches  to  the  re- 
moval of  officers  from  situations  which  they  are  supposed 
incapable  of  filling,  particularly  from  situations  of  com- 
paratively subordinate  rank.  Odium  may  attach  to  the 
person  who  removes  them  without  otherwise  providing 
for  them ;  but  I  don't  believe  that  either  his  Royal  High- 
ness or  I  could  ever  be  called  upon  as  public  men  to 
account  for  the  removal  of  any  of  them. 


64  JrORDS    OF 

I  feel  strongly,  and  others  under  my  command  feel 
still  more  strongly,  the  inconvenience  of  being  obliged  to 
employ  some  at  least  of  the  officers  above  mentioned,  but 
in  every  letter  which  I  have  ever  written  upon  a  subject 
of  this  description,  I  have  protested  against  anything 
harsh  being  done  to  the  officer  who  I  wished  should  be 
removed.  I  have  not  by  me  at  present  the  copy  of  my 
letter  to  you  upon  the  subject  of  these  officers,  and  I 
can't  be  certain  that  it  did  not  contain  the  same  request, 
and  I  keep  his  Royal  Highness's  orders  by  me  till  I  shall 
see  whether  it  does  or  not.  If  it  does  not,  I  beg  to  refer 
the  order  for  his  further  consideration,  and  to  request 
that  none  of  these  officers  should  be  removed  unless  his 
Royal  Highness  has  it  in  his  power  to  employ  them  on 
the  home  staff  or  elsewhere. 

I  don't  mean  to  alter  my  report  of  them  in  any  degree 
when  I  state  that  I  believe  them  all  to  be  zealous  in  the 
service ;  but  in  my  opinion  and  in  the  opinion  of  those 
under  me,  and  who  are  more  immediately  in  communi- 
cation with  them,  they  are  not  fit  for  their  situations ;  at 
the  same  time  I  wish  they  should  not  be  removed  unless 
they  can  be  otherwise  provided  for.  I  beg  that  it  may 
be  understood  that  I  am  ready  to  bear  all  the  responsi- 
bility or  odium  which  can  attach  to  the  person  who 
causes  their  removal.  (To  Col.  Torrens,  Military  Secre- 
tary. Niza,  22nd  Jan.  1813.) 

MAJESTY. 

I  wish  that  some  of  our  reformers  would  go  to  Cadiz, 
to  see  the  benefit  of  a  sovereign's  popular  assembly 
calling  itself  Majesty  ;  and  of  a  written  constitution ; 
and  of  an  executive  Government  called  "  Highness," 
acting  under  the  control  of  "  His  Majesty,"  the  as- 
sembly !  In  truth  there  is  no  authority  in  the  state,  ex- 


SL 0  VENL  Y  HABITS.  6  5 

cepting  the  libellous  newspapers ;  and  they  certainly 
ride  over  both  Cortes  and  Regency  without  mercy.  (To 
Earl  Bathurst.  Freneda,  11th  Jan.  1813.) 

A  FORTUNATE  MAN. 

I  have  written  to  His  Royal  Highness  to  thank  him 
for  my  appointment  to  be  Colonel  of  the  Blues.  I 
believe  there  never  was  so  fortunate  or  so  favoured  a 
man.  (To  Colonel  Torrens,  Military  Secretary.  Freueda, 
31st  Jan.  1813.) 

SLOVENLY  BUSINESS  WATS. 

As  far  as  I  have  any  knowledge  of  the  sentiments  of 
the  King's  ministers  I  believe  them  to  be  well  disposed 
towards  you,  and  the  omission  to  which  you  advert, 
unaccountable  as  it  is,  must  be  attributed  to  that  kind 
of  negligent,  slovenly  mode  of  doing  business  which  is 
too  common  among  public  men  in  England.  (To  Mar- 
shal Sir  W.  C.  Beresford,  K.B.  Freueda,  Wth  Feb. 
1813.) 

HONOURABLY  ACQUITTED. 

...  I  likewise  return  the  proceedings  on  the  trials 

of  Hospital  mates ,  ,  and ,  for  the  same 

reason,  and  in  order  that  the  Court  may  revise  their 
sentence. 

These  three  gentlemen  were  charged  with  a  drunken 
riot  at  Coimbra,  of  the  existence  of  which  there  is  un- 
doubted evidence  on  the  face  of  the  proceedings  ;  and 
yet  because  none  of  the  facts  charged  are  proved  against 
one  of  the  three,  the  Court  have  thought  proper  honour- 
ably to  acquit  him.  I  should  wish  the  Court  to  consider 
whether  it  is  possible  that  there  can  be  any  honour  in 
the  conduct  of  any  man  in  a  riot  by  a  drunken  party  of 

F 


66  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

which  he  is  one.  His  conduct  may  have  been  an  excep- 
tion to  that  of  others,  but  it  is  quite  impossible  that  it 
should  be  honourable.  (To  Major-Gen.  Baron  Brock. 
Freueda,  March  20,  1813.) 

FRENCH  GOVERNMENT. 

From  what  I  know  of  the  French  system  of  govern- 
ment I  entertain  no  doubt  of  its  being  very  oppressive, 
and  that  all  thinking  men  in  any  country  in  which  it  is 
established  must  be  desirous  of  getting  rid  of  it.  But 
the  question  amongst  these  must  always  be  in  what 
manner,  and  at  the  expense  of  what  exertions;  and 
there  are  many,  probably  the  majority  of  this  class,  who 
would  prefer  to  trust  to  the  chapter  of  accidents,  to  in- 
volving themselves  and  their  country  in  the  dangers  and 
losses  of  a  general  insurrection ;  and  by  far  the  greater 
majority  of  the  people  in  those  countries,  particularly 
those  in  easy  circumstances,  would  prefer  to  pass  their 
lives  quietly  under  any  system  of  government,  however 
oppressive,  to  making  any  sacrifices,  or  any  exertions,  in 
order  to  get  rid  of  it.  I  believe  this  to  be  the  case  in 
Italy ;  and  I  have  not  seen  any  proof  of  the  existence  of 
a  general  desire  to  get  rid  of  the  French  government ; 
nor  have  I  ever  been  able  to  learn  the  names  of  any 
principal  men,  or  ever  to  discover  that  in  any  particular 
town  there  existed  men  of  talents  and  influence  who  had 
anything  to  say  to  this  supposed  insurrection. 

The  question  of  insurrection  in  any  country  must 
always  be  one  of  great  doubt;  but  it  appears  to  me 
that  if  such  a  measure  should  be  adopted  by  any  coun- 
try, at  any  time,  it  ought  to  be  adopted  by  Germany  at 
present.  It  appears  that  the  people  cannot  be  in  a 
worse  situation  than  they  are  ;  their  enemy  is  humbled, 
and  there  is  a  formidable  and  victorious  army  on  the 


WOMAN'S  INFLUENCE.  67 

frontier  ready  to  give  support  to  their  efforts.  But 
those  who  are  about  to  involve  their  country  in  these 
troubles,  must  not  imagine  that  their  task  is  an  easy 
one,  or  that  the  contest  or  its  evils  will  be  of  short  du- 
ration. They  little  know  the  character  of  their  enemy, 
and  have  studied  his  conduct  but  little,  if  they  don't 
expect  a  most  vigorous  contest  if  once  they  draw  the 
sword,  and  are  not  prepared  as  he  is  to  endure  every- 
thing, and  to  go  to  all  extremities  to  attain  their 
object.  (To  Earl  Bathnrst.  Freueda,  list  March,  1813.) 

AN  INADMISSIBLE  DOCTRINE. 

.  .  .  I  can't  but  observe,  upon 's  com- 
plaint that  he  is  to  be  placed  at  the  disposal  of  a  foreign 
tribunal,  that  the  notion  is  too  common  among  the  offi- 
cers and  soldiers  of  the  army,  that  they  are  not  obliged 
to  obey  the  laws  of  the  country  in  which  they  are  acting; 
or,  in  other  words,  that  they  may  act  as  they  please,  and 
may  commit  such  outrages  as  they  think  proper,  pro- 
vided they  don't  offend  against  the  Mutiny  Act,  and 
Articles  of  War.  I  can't,  however,  admit  of  such  a  doc- 
trine ;  and —  will  be  an  instance  that  the  laws 

of  the  country  must  be  obeyed  if  the  Portuguese  govern- 
ment shall  desire  that  he  may  be  delivered  over  to  the 
tribunals  of  that  country.  (To  Lieut.- Gen.  the  Hon.  Sir 
G.  L.  Cole,  K.B.  Freueda,  25th  March,  1813.) 

TUB  INFLUENCE  OF  WOMAN. 

is  a  weak  foolish  creature,  who  did  not  know 

what  he  was  about,  or  the  mischief  he  was  doing.    I  am 

astonished  that should  be  so  anxious  about  him, 

but  I  conclude  that  this  anxiety  has  some  relation  to  the 
sick  lady  ;  and  one  can  only  lament  that  he  should  be 


68  WORDS   OF   WELLIXGTOX. 

another  instance  of  the  influence  possessed  by  women 
over  the  most  sensible  men.  ( To  the  Right  Hon.  Sir  H. 
Wellesley,  K.B.  Freueda,  4th  May,  1813.) 

DUTY  WITHOUT  MORTIFICATION. 

...  I  acknowledge  that  I  cannot  understand  the  nature 
of  the  feelings  of  an  officer  which  are  to  be  mortified  by 
his  performance  of  his  duty  in  the  situation  in  which 
His  Majesty  and  the  rules  of  the  service  have  placed 
him  ;  and  I  can  only  say  that  in  the  course  of  my  mili- 
tary life,  I  have  gone  from  the  command  of  a  brigade  to 
that  of  my  regiment,  and  from  the  command  of  an  army 
to  that  of  a  brigade  or  division,  as  I  was  ordered,  with- 
out feeling  any  mortification.  (To  Col.  . 

Freueda,  10th  May,  1813.) 

BRITISH  ORDERS. 

Having  received  from  Sir  Thomas  Graham  the  In- 
signia of  the  Order  of  the  Garter,  I  enclose  a  letter 
from  Lady  Wellington,  containing  directions  for  return- 
ing to  the  Genealogist  of  the  Bath  the  Collar  and  Badge 
of  that  order.  Some  of  my  brother  officers,  however, 
have  expressed  an  anxious  desire  that  I  should  continue 
a  Knight  of  the  Bath,  into  which  I  have  admitted  most 
of  them,  and  all  of  them  owe  this  honour  to  actions 
performed  under  my  command.  Under  these  circum- 
stances, and  adverting  to  the  reasons  which  induced 
you  to  wish  that  I  should  resign  the  order,  I  would 
wish  you  to  consider  whether  it  would  not  be  better  that 
I  should  keep  it :  first,  there  is  a  precedent  of  a  British 
subject  holding  two  British  orders,  neither  of  them  mili- 
tary, in  the  case  of  the  Duke  of  Roxburgh  ;  secondly,  if 
you  will  refer  to  the  Statute  of  the  Order  of  May  1812, 
you  will  see  that  upon  my  resignation  you  have  not  the 


KNIGHTHOOD.  69 

power  of  appointing  a  Knight  of  the  Bath.  My  stall 
will  be  filled  by  the  Senior  Extra  Knight,  and  under 
the  Statute  you  may  appoint  as  many  extra  knights  as 
you  please. 

I  feel  great  reluctance  in  suggesting  that  I  should 
keep  this  order,  and  should  not  have  done  so  if  it  had 
not  been  suggested  to  me  by  some  of  the  knights.  God 
knows  I  have  plenty  of  orders ;  and  I  consider  myself 
to  have  been  most  handsomely  treated  by  the  Prince 
Regent  and  his  Government,  and  shall  not  consider  my- 
self the  less  so,  if  you  should  not  think  proper  that  I 
should  retain  the  Order  of  the  Bath.  I  beg  you  will 
return  me  the  enclosed  letter  or  not,  as  you  may  decide 
upon  this  point. 

Believe  me,  &c.,  WELLINGTON. 
(To  the  Earl  of  Liverpool    Freueda,  12th  May,  1813.) 

THE  PRINCE  OF  ORANGE. 

The  Prince  of  Orange  appears  to  me  to  have  a  very 
good  understanding,  he  has  had  a  very  good  education, 
his  manners  are  very  engaging,  and  he  is  liked  by  every 
person  who  approaches  him :  such  a  man  may  become 
anything  ;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  he  is  very  young,  and 
can  have  no  experience  in  business,  particularly  in  the 
business  of  revolutions ;  he  is  very  shy  and  diffident ; 
and  I  don't  know  that  it  will  not  be  a  disadvantage  to 
him  to  place  him  in  a  situation  in  which  he  is  to  be  at 
the  head  of  great  concerns  of  this  description ;  and  that 
too  much  is  not  to  be  expected  from  him.  The  worst 
that  can  happen  to  him,  in  my  opinion,  is,  that  he  should 
remain  long  in  England ;  and  if  it  had  been  arranged 
that  he  should  go  to  the  Prussian  army,  and  his  father 
had  not  been  in  London,  I  should  have  advised  him  on 


7o  WORDS    OF   V'ELLISGTOX. 

his  departure  to  stay  in  London  as  short  a  time  as  was 
possible,  and  to  keep  himself  quite  clear  of  cabals  and 
disputes,  and  I  am  sure  he  would  have  done  as  I  should 
desire  him.  His  father  being  there,  things  are  different ; 
and  as  he  is  looked  to  as  the  head  of  the  insurrection  in 
Holland,  he  will  have  to  wait  in  London,  of  course,  till 
there  shall  be  some  appearance  of  such  an  insurrection. 
(To  Earl  Bathurst.  Freueda,  18th  May,  1813.) 


VlTTORIA. 

I  have  the  pleasure  to  inform  you  that  we  beat  the 
French  army  commanded  by  the  King,  in  a  general 
action  near  Vittoria  yesterday,  having  taken  from  them 
more  than  120  pieces  of  cannon,  all  their  ammunition, 
baggage,  provisions,  money,  &c.  Our  loss  has  not  been 
severe.  ...  I  am  much  concerned  to  add  to  this 
account  that  of  the  severe  wound  and  reported  death  of 
Cadogan.  .  .  .  He  had  distinguished  himself  early 
in  the  action ;  .  .  .  and  received  a  wound  in  the  spine, 
as  I  am  informed,  and  he  died  last  night.  .  .  .  His 
private  character  and  his  worth  as  an  individual  were 
not  greater  than  his  merits  as  an  officer,  and  I  shall  ever 
regret  him.  The  concern  which  I  feel  upon  his  loss 
has  diminished  exceedingly  the  satisfaction  I  should  de- 
rive from  our  success,  as  it  will  yours.  (Salvatierra,  '2'2nd 
June,  1813.) 

PUBLIC  TBADCCERS. 

.  .  .  All  those  who  serve  the  public  honestly  and  faith- 
fully have  for  their  enemies  and  traducers  those  who 
are  desirous  of  profiting  by  the  public  wants,  incon- 


DISCIPLINE.  71 

veniences  and  disasters,  and  Ify  the    misfortunes  of  the 
times.  (To  Major- Gen.  Cooke.  Amusco,  Sth  June,  1813.) 

SERVICES  RENDERED  TO  SPAIN. 

It  is  not  my  habit,  nor  do  I  feel  inclined,  to  make  a 
parade  of  my  services  to  the  Spanish  nation ;  but  I  must 
say  that  I  have  never  abused  the  powers  with  which  the 
Government  and  the  Cortes  have  entrusted  me,  in  any, 
the  most  trifling  instance,  nor  have  ever  used  them  for 
any  purpose  excepting  to  forward  the  public  service. 
(  To  the  Minister  at  War,  Cadiz.  Huarle,  1ml  July,  1813.) 

LITTLE  REAL  DISCIPLINE  IN  THE  ARMY. 

The  fact  is  that  if  discipline  means  habits  of  obedience 
to  orders,  as  well  as  military  instruction,  we  have  but 
little  of  it  in  the  army.  Nobody  ever  thinks  of  obeying 
an  order ;  and  all  the  regulations  of  the  Horse  Guards, 
as  well  as  of  the  War  Office,  and  all  the  orders  of  the 
army  applicable  to  this  peculiar  service  are  so  much 
waste  paper. 

It  is,  however,  an  unrivalled  army  for  fighting,  if 
the  soldiers  can  only  be  kept  in  their  ranks  during  the 
battle ;  but  it  wants  some  of  those  qualities  which  are 
indispensable,  to  enable  a  General  to  bring  them  into  the 
field  in  the  order  in  which  an  army  ought  to  be  to  meet 
an  enemy,  or  to  take  all  the  advantage  to  be  derived 
from  a  victory  ;  and  the  cause  of  these  defects  is  the 
want  of  habits  of  obedience  and  attention  to  orders  by 
the  inferior  officers,  and,  indeed,  I  might  add,  by  all. 
They  never  attend  to  an  order  with  an  intention  to  obey 
it,  or  sufficiently  to  understand  it  be  it  ever  so  clear, 
and  therefore  never  obey  it  when  obedience  becomes 
troublesome,  or  difficult  or  important.  (To  Col.  Torrens, 
Military  Secretary.  Lesaca,  18/A  July,  1813.) 


72  WORDS  OF  WELLIXGTOX. 

THE  GREAT  WANT  OF  THE  NATION. 
The  great  want  of  this  nation  is  of  men  capable  of 
conducting  public  business  of  any  description ;  and  the 
Revolution,  as  it  is  called,  instead  of  having  caused  an 
improvement  in  this  respect,  has  rather  augmented  the 
evil  by  bringing  forward  into  public  employment  of  im- 
portance more  inexperienced  people,  and  by  giving  to 
men  in  general  false  notions,  entirely  incompatible  with 
the  nature  of  their  business;  then  all  real  improvements 
in  the  mode  of  governing  and  of  transacting  business 
are  despised  by  the  Government  and  Cortes,  and  never 
thought  of.  (2b  Lieut.-Gen.  Lord  W.  Bentinck.  Lesaca, 
'20th  July,  1813.) 

THE  SPANISH  CHARACTER. 

Your  Lordship  must  have  seen  enough  of  the  Spanish 
character,  during  the  contest  and  our  connection  with 
them,  to  be  aware  that  it  will  not  answer  to  press  any 
measure  upon  them  which  they  don't  like.  I  have  not 
seen  amongst  them  the  slightest  inclination  to  employ 
English  officers  to  discipline  their  troops  to  such  an  ex- 
tent as  would  answer  any  useful  purpose ;  and  I  believe 
that  one  of  the  reasons  for  which  they  like  me  so  well 
is,  that,  contrary  to  their  expectations,  I  have  not  pressed 
them  to  take  English  officers.  Besides,  as  I  have  above 
stated  to  your  Lordship,  the  Spanish  troops  don't  want 
discipline,  if  by  discipline  is  meant  instruction,  so  much 
as  they  do  a  system  of  order,  which  can  be  founded  only 
on  regular  pay  and  food,  and  good  care  and  clothing. 
These  British  officers  could  not  give  them  ;  and  not- 
withstanding that  the  Portuguese  are  now  the  Jighting- 
cocks  of  the  army,  I  believe  we  owe  their  merits  more  to 
the  care  we  have  taken  of  their  pockets  and  bellies  than 


OFFICERS.  73 

to  the  instruction  we  have  given  them.  In  the  end  of 
last  campaign,  they  behaved,  in  many  instances,  exceed- 
ingly ill,  because  they  were  in  extreme  misery,  the  Por- 
tuguese government  having  neglected  to  pay  them.  I 
have  forced  the  Portuguese  government  to  make  ar- 
rangements to  pay  them  regularly  this  year,  and  every- 
body knows  how  they  behave.  Our  own  troops  always 
fight,  but  the  influence  of  regular  pay  is  seriously  felt 
on  their  conduct,  their  health,  and  their  efficiency  ;  and 
as  for  the  French  troops,  it  is  notorious  that  they  will  do 
nothing  unless  regularly  paid  and  fed.  (To  the  Earl  of 
Liverpool.  Lesaca,  25th  July,  1813.) 

"  BLUDGEON  WORK  "  AT  LESACA. 

I  never  saw  such  fighting  as  we  have  had  here.  It 
began  on  the  25th,  and  excepting  the  29th,  when  not  a 
shot  was  fired,  we  had  it  every  day  till  the  2nd.  The 
battle  of  the  28th  was  fair  bludgeon  work.  The  4th 
division  was  principally  engaged ;  and  the  loss  of  the 
enemy  was  immense.  Our  loss  has  likewise  been  very 
severe,  but  not  of  a  nature  to  cripple  us.  (To  Lieut.- 
GeneralLord  W.  Bentinck,  K.B.  Lesaca,  5th  Aug.  1813.) 

LANGUAGE  OF  OFFICERS. 

It  has  always  been  my  wish,  as  your  Excellency  knows, 
to  support  the  existing  authority ;  and  there  are  not 
wanting  instances,  since  I  have  held  the  command  of  the 
Spanish  army,  of  my  having  interposed  to  prevent 
officers  in  high  stations  from  assuming  authority  not 
belonging  to  them,  and  from  using  language  in  their 
addresses  to  be  laid  before  the  Government  more  ex- 
pressive of  their  irritated  feelings  than  of  their  respect. 
Such  conduct  and  language  is,  in  ordinary  circumstances, 
quite  inexcusable.  And  the  only  excuse  which  can  be 


74  V'ORUS    OF    WELLINGTON. 

alleged  for  its  existence  (which  is  none  for  its  continu- 
ance) is  the  state  in  which  the  Government  and  army 
of  Spain  had  been  for  some  time  past.  (  To  the  Minister 
of  War,  Cadiz.  Lesaca,  Tth  Aug.  1813.) 

LIMITS  TO  MILITARY  SUCCESS. 

Tt  is  a  very  common  error,  among  those  unacquainted 
•with  military  affairs,  to  believe  that  there  are  no  limits 
to  military  success.  .  .  .  An  army  which  has  made 
such  marches,  and  has  fought  such  battles,  as  that  under 
my  command  has,  is  necessarily  much  deteriorated.  In- 
dependently of  the  actual  loss  of  numbers  by  death, 
wounds,  and  sickness,  many  men  and  officers  are  out  of 
the  ranks  for  various  causes.  The  equipment  of  the 
army,  their  ammunition,  the  soldiers'  shoes,  &c.,  require 
renewal ;  the  magazines  for  the  new  operations  require 
to  be  collected  and  formed ;  and  many  arrangements  to 
be  made  without  which  the  army  could  not  exist  a  day, 
but  which  are  not  generally  understood  by  those  who 
have  not  had  the  direction  of  such  concerns  in  their 
hands.  Then  observe  that  this  new  operation  is  the  in- 
vasion of  France,  in  which  country  everybody  is  a  soldier, 
where  the  whole  population  is  armed  and  organized, 
under  persons,  not  as  in  other  countries  inexperienced 
in  arms,  but  men  who  in  the  course  of  the  last  twenty- 
five  years,  in  which  France  has  been  engaged  in  war 
with  all  Europe,  must,  the  majority  of  them  at  least, 
have  served  somewhere.  (Jo  Earl  Bathurst.  Lesaca, 
8th  Aug.  1813.) 

How  THE  POWER  OF  THE  WORLD  is  TO  BE  RESTORED. 

The  object  of  each  [country]  should  be  to  diminish 
the  power  and  influence  of  France,  by  which  alone  the 
peace  of  the  world  can  be  restored  and  maintained ;  and 


75 

although  the  aggrandizement  and  security  of  the  power 
of  one's  own  country  is  the  duty  of  every  man,  all  nations 
may  depend  upon  it,  that  the  best  security  for  power 
and  for  every  advantage  now  possessed  or  to  be  acquired, 
is  to  be  found  in  the  reduction  of  the  power  and  influ- 
ence of  the  grand  disturber;  and  in  the  adoption  of  some 
scheme  for  that  object,  to  be  acted  upon  by  the  allies  in 
concert,  whether  in  the  negotiation  for  peace,  or  in  the 
operations  of  war.  (To  Earl  Bathurst.  Lesaca,  \4tft 
Aug.  1813  ) 

THE  USE  OF  MORTARS  IN  A  SIEGE. 
I  am  quite  certain  that  the  use  of  mortars  and  how- 
itzers in  a   siege   for  the  purpose  of  what 

calls  general  annoyance,  answers  no  purpose  whatever, 
against  a  Spanish  place  occupied  by  the  French  troops, 
excepting  against  the  inhabitants  of  the  place ;  and 
eventually,  when  we  shall  get  the  place,  against  our- 
selves, and  the  convenience  we  should  derive  from 
having  the  houses  of  the  place  in  a  perfect  state  of  re- 
pair. (To  Lieut.-Gen.  Sir  T.  Graham,  K.B.  Lesaca, 
23rd  Aug.  1813.) 

NOT  TIRED  OF  SUCCESS. 

Your  lordship  may  depend  upon  it  that  I  am  by  no 
means  tired  of  success  ;  and  that  I  shall  do  everything 
in  my  power  to  draw  the  attention  of  the  enemy  to  this 
quarter,  as  soon  as  I  shall  know  that  hostilities  are  really 
renewed  in  Germany.  (To  Earl  Bathurst.  Lesaca,  23rd 
Avg.  1813.) 

SPANISH   SLAVERY. 

If  the  Princess  (of  Brazil)  is  to  be  a  Regent  accord- 
ing to  the  Constitution,  the  British  Government  need 
not  feel  much  anxiety  respecting  her  feelings  or  her 


76  WORDS    OF    WELLINGTON. 

conduct.  She  will  be  the  slave  of  the  Cortes,  as  all  the 
other  .Regents  have  been  and  must  be,  so  long  as  matters 
continue  as  they  are  ;  and  the  Cortes  will  continue  to  be 
the  slaves  of  the  mob  of  the  place  of  their  residence,  and 
of  their  leaders  the  writers  of  the  newspapers,  as  all  such 
assemblies,  particularly  of  Spaniards,  must  be.  {To 
Earl  Bathurst.  Lesaca,  5th  Sept.  1813.) 

PROMOTION  BY  INTEREST. 

.  .  .  I  have  never  interfered  directly  to  procure 
for  any  officer  serving  under  my  command,  those  marks 
of  his  Majesty's  favour  by  which  many  have  been 
honoured ;  nor  do  I  believe  that  any  have  ever  applied 
for  them,  or  have  hinted  through  any  other  quarter 
their  desire  to  obtain  them.  They  have  been  conferred, 
as  far  as  I  have  any  knowledge,  spontaneously,  in  the 
only  mode  in  my  opinion  in  which  favours  can  be  accept- 
able, or  honours  and  distinctions  can  be  received  with 
satisfaction.  The  only  share  which  I  have  had  in  these 
transactions  has  been  by  bringing  the  merits  and  services 
of  the  several  officers  of  the  army  distinctly  under  the 
view  of  the  Sovereign  and  the  public,  in  my  reports  to 
the  Secretary  of  State ;  and  I  am  happy  to  state  that 
no  general  in  this  army  has  more  frequently  than  your- 
self deserved  and  obtained  this  favourable  report  of  your 
services  and  conduct.  It  is  impossible  for  me  even  to 
guess  what  are  the  shades  of  distinction  by  which  those 
are  guided  who  advise  the  Prince  Regent  in  the  bestow- 
ing those  honourable  marks  of  distinction,  and  you  will 
not  expect  that  I  should  enter  upon  such  a  discussion. 
What  I  would  recommend  to  you  is  to  express  neither 
disappointment  nor  wishes  upon  the  subject,  even  to  an 
intimate  friend,  much  less  to  the  Government.  Con- 
tinue as  you  have  done  hitherto  to  deserve  the  honour- 


RECRUITING.  77 

able  distinction  to  which  you  aspire,  and  you  may  be 
certain  that  if  the  Government  is  wise  you  will  obtain 
it.  It'  you  should  not  obtain  it,  you  may  depend  upon 
it  that  there  is  no  person  of  whose  good  opinion  you 
would  be  solicitous  who  will  think  the  worse  of  you  on 
that  account.  .  .  .  Notwithstanding  the  numerous 
favours  that  I  have  received  from  the  Crown  I  have 
never  solicited  one,  and  I  have  never  hinted,  nor  would 
any  one  of  my  friends  or  relations  venture  to  hint  for 
me,  a  desire  to  receive  even  one ;  and  much  as  I  have 
been  favoured,  the  consciousness  that  it  has  been 
spontaneously  by  the  King  and  Regent  gives  me  more 
satisfaction  than  anything  else.  I  recommend  to  you 
the  same  conduct  and  patience,  and  above  all,  resigna- 
tion, if,  after  all,  you  should  not  succeed  in  acquiring 
what  you  wish,  and  I  beg  you  to  recall  your  letters, 
which  you  may  be  certain  will  be  of  no  use  to  you.  (To 
—.  Lesaca,  10th  Sept.  1813.) 

BEST  METHOD  OF  RECRUITING. 

I  entirely  concur  with  you  in  thinking  that  the  best 
measure  you  can  adopt  to  aid  the  recruiting  of  the  army 
is  to  give  an  allowance  to  the  wives  and  children,  par- 
ticularly of  the  Irish  and  Scotch  soldiers.  When  I  was 
in  office,  in  Ireland,  I  had  an  opportunity  of  knowing 
that  the  women  took  the  utmost  pains  to  prevent  the 
men  from  volunteering  to  serve  in  the  line,  and  from 
enlisting,  naturally  enough,  because  from  that  moment 
they  went,  not  upon  the  parish,  but  upon  the  dunghill 
to  starve.  Indeed  it  is  astonishing  that  any  Irish  militia 
soldier  was  ever  found  to  volunteer ;  they  must  be  cer- 
tainly the  very  worst  members  of  society,  and  I  have 
often  been  induced  to  attribute  the  frequency  and  enor- 
mity of  the  crimes  committed  by  the  soldiers  to  our 


78  WORDS    OF    WELLINGTON. 

having  so  many  men  who  must  have  left  their  families 
to  starve  for  the  inducement  of  a  few  guineas  to  get 
drunk.  A  provision,  however,  for  the  wives  and  chil- 
dren of  the  soldiers  will  probably  revive  the  spirit  of 
volunteering,  and  we  shall  get  better  men  than  we  have 
at  present.  (To  Earl  Bathurst.  Lesaca,~24th  Sept.  1813.) 

PLUNDER  OF  ST.  SEBASTIAN. 

In  regard  to  the  plunder  of  the  town  (San  Sebastian) 
by  the  soldiers,  I  am  the  last  man  who  will  deny  it,  be- 
cause I  know  that  it  is  true.  It  has  fallen  to  my  lot  to 
take  many  towns  by  storm,  and  I  am  concerned  to  add, 
that  I  never  saw  or  beard  of  one  so  taken  by  any  troops 
that  it  was  not  plundered.  It  is  one  of  the  evil  conse- 
quences attending  the  necessity  of  storming  a  town, 
which  every  officer  laments,  not  only  on  account  of  the 
evil  thereby  inflicted  on  the  unfortunate  inhabitants,  but 
on  account  of  the  injury  it  does  to  discipline,  and  the 
risk  which  is  incurred  of  the  loss  of  all  the  advantages 
of  victory,  at  the  very  moment  they  are  gained.  .  .  . 
Notwithstanding  that  I  am  convinced  it  is  impossible  to 
prevent  a  town  in  such  a  situation  from  being  plundered, 
I  can  prove  that  upon  this  occasion,  particular  pains 
were  taken  to  prevent  it.  I  gave  most  positive  orders 
upon  the  subject,  and  desired  that  the  officers  might  be 
warned  of  the  peculiar  situation  of  the  place,  the  garri- 
son having  the  castle  to  retire  to,  and  of  the  danger  that 
they  would  attempt  to  retake  the  town  if  they  found  the 
assailants  were  engaged  in  plunder.  (To  the  RigJtt  Hon. 
Sir  H.  Wellesley,  K.B.  Lesaca,  9th  Oct.  1813.) 

NEWSPAPER  HARM. 

Our  newspapers  do  us  plenty  of  harm  by  that  which 
they  insert,  but  I  never  suspected  that  they  could  do  us 
the  injury  of  alienating  us  from  a  government  and  nation 


LIBEL.  79 

with  which  on  every  account  we  ought  to  be  on  the  best 
of  terms,  by  that  which  they  omit.  I  who  have  been 
in  public  life  in  England,  know  well  that  there  is  nothing 
more  different  from  a  debate  in  Parliament  than  the 
representation  of  that  debate  in  the  newspapers.  The 
fault  which  I  find  with  our  newspapers  is,  that  they  so 
seldom  state  an  event  or  transaction  as  it  really  occurred 
(unless  when  they  absolutely  copy  what  is  written  for 
them),  and  their  observations  wander  so  far  from  the 
text  (.-ven  wben  they  have  a  dispatch  or  other  writing 
before  them  that  they  appear  to  be  absolutely  incapable 
of  understanding,  much  less  of  stating  the  truth  on  any 
subject.  ( To  His  Excellency  Sir  C.  Stuart,  K,B.  Vera, 
UthOct.  1813.) 

LIBEL. 

.  I  never  saw  such  a  libel  as  in  the  Duende. 
If  it  is  published  in  England  I  shall  prosecute  the  printer. 
.  .  .  I  don't  know  how  long  my  temper  will  last,  but 
I  was  never  so  much  disgusted  with  anything  as  with 
this  libel,  and  I  don't  know  whether  the  conduct  of  the 
soldiers  in  plundering  San  Sebastian,  or  the  libels  of  the 
Xefe  Politico  and  Duende  made  me  most  angry.  (To 
the  Right  Hon.  Sir  H.  WeUesley,  K.B.  Vera,  Uth  Oct. 
1813.) 

A  SHOWER  OF  CALUMNIES. 

There  is  no  end  of  the  calumnies  against  me  and  the 
army,  and  I  should  have  no  time  to  do  anything  else,  if 
I  were  to  begin  either  to  refute  or  even  to  notice  them. 
Very  lately  they  took  the  occasion  of  a  libel  in  an  7mA 
newspaper,  reporting  a  supposed  conversation  between 
Castaiios  and  me  (in  which  I  am  supposed  to  have  con- 
sented to  change  my  religion  to  become  King  of  Spain, 


8o  WORDS    OF    WELLINGTON. 

and  he  to  have  promised  the  consent  of  the  grandees),  to 
accuse  me  of  this  intention  ;  and  then  those  fools,  the 

Duques  de and  de  *     *     *,  and  the  Viscomte  de 

,  protest  formally  that  they  are  not  of  the  number 

of  the  grandees  who  had  given  their  consent  to  such  an 
arrangement !  !  !  What  can  be  done  with  such  libels  and 
such  people,  excepting  despise  them,  and  continuing  one's 
road  without  noticing  them  ? 

I  should  have  taken  no  notice  of  the  libel  about  San 
Sebastian  if  it  had  not  come  officially  before  me  in  the 
letter  from  the  Minister  at  War ;  nor  shall  I  of  this  se- 
cond libel  in  the  Duende,  although,  from  what  I  see  of  it 
in  the  Redactor,  for  I  don't  take  the  Due?ide,  it  is  obvious 
that  it  comes  from  the  Minister  at  War ;  and  is  written 
in  expectation  that  my  answer  to  his  letter  would  be, 
that  there  had  been  no  plunder  and  no  punishment.  (To 
the  Right  Hon.  Sir  H.  Wellesley,  KB.  Vera,  16th  Oct. 
1813.) 

THE  MEDAX  QUESTION. 

In  regard  to  the  medals  I  have  always  been  of  opinion 
that  Government  should  have  extended  the  principle 
more  than  they  did ;  and  in  executing  their  orders,  I 
believe  it  will  be  found  that  whenever  a  medal  could  be 
given  to  an  individual  under  the  orders  of  government, 
I  have  inserted  his  name  in  the  return.  However,  my 
decision  on  this  or  any  other  subject  is  not  final ;  and  if 
anybody  doubts  I  wish  he  would  apply  to  a  superior 
authority.  .  . 

In  regard  to  the  Ciudad  Rodrigo  medal,  it  is  for  the 
storm  of  the  place.  Those  officers  and  troops  even  em- 
ployed in  the  siege  don't  get  it ;  much  less  the  larger 
part  of  the  army  brought  there  to  protect  the  operation 


BUONAPARTE.  81 

of  the  siege  incase  of  necessity.  .'  .  However,  my 
judgment  or  fairness  must  not  be  relied  on  in  these  cases  ; 
and  I  can  have  no  objection  to  an  appeal  from  it,  to 
higher  authority  on  any  point.  (To  Marshal  Sir  W. 
C.  Beresford,  K.B.  Vera,  6th  Nov.  1813.) 

GERMAN  TROOPS. 

Although  I  am  very  well  pleased  with  the  German 
troops  (and  in  one  respect,  their  health,  they  are  very 
superior  to  any  you  could  send  us),  they  desert  so  ter- 
ribly, and  in  this(respect  set  our  men  so  bad  an  example, 
that  I  should  not  be  sorry  to  get  rid  of  them.  It  is 
really  quite  disgraceful.  I  don't  believe  a  man  remains 
of  the  last  recruits  sent  out  to  the  German  Legion. 
They  were  raised  from  the  prisoners  sent  home  after 
the  battle  of  Vittoria,  and  I  would  observe  that  if  this  is 
to  be  allowed  it  would  be  much  better  to  enlist  them 
here,  as  Government  would  at  least  save  the  expense  of 
their  passage  to  England  and  back.  They  generally  be- 
long to  the  Nassau  regiment,  which  we  are  endeavour- 
ing to  bring  over  in  a  body,  and  in  the  meantime  are 
recruiting  it  in  detail.  Between  the  Spaniards,  Ger- 
mans, and  I  am  sorry  to  add  English,  I  believe  we  have 
not  lost  less  than  1,200  men  in  the  last  four  months. 
The  Portuguese  (to  their  honour  be  it  recollected)  do 
not  desert  to  the  enemy ;  when  they  go,  it  is  to  return  to 
their  own  country.  (To  Earl  Bathurst.  Vera,  9th  Nov. 
1813.) 

BUONAPARTE  AND  THE  FRENCH. 

I  have  had  a  good  deal  of  conversation  with  people 
here  and  at  St.  Pe,  regarding  the  sentiments  of  the  people 
of  France  in  general  respecting  Buonaparte  and  his 
Government ;  and  I  have  found  it  to  be  exactly  what 
might  be  supposed  from  all  that  we  have  heard  and  know 


82.  WORDS    OF    WELLINGTON. 

of  his  system.  They  all  agree  in  one  opinion,  viz.  that 
the  sentiment  throughout  France  is  the  same  as  I  have 
found  it  here,  an  earnest  desire  to  get  rid  of  him,  from 
a  conviction  that  as  long  as  he  governs,  they  will  have 
no  peace.  The  language  common  to  all  is,  that  although 
the  grievous  hardships  and  oppression  under  which  they 
suffer  are  intolerable,  they  dare  not  have  the  satisfac- 
tion even  of  complaining  ;  that  on  the  contrary  they  are 
obliged  to  pretend  to  rejoice,  and  that  they  are  allowed 
only  to  lament  in  secret  and  in  silence  their  hard  fate. 
.  .  .  I  can  only  tell  you  that  if  I  were  a  Prince 
of  the  House  of  Bourbon,  nothing  should  prevent  me 
from  now  coming  forward,  not  in  a  good  house  in 
London,  but  in  the  field  in  France ;  and  if  Great 
Britain  would  stand  by  him  I  am  sure  he  would  suc- 
ceed. This  success  would  be  much  more  certain  in 
a  month  or  more  hence  when  Napoleon  commences  to 
carry  into  execution  the  oppressive  measures  which  he 
must  adopt  in  order  to  try  to  retrieve  his  fortunes.  .  .  . 
I  am  convinced  more  than  ever  that  Napoleon's  power 
stands  upon  corruption,  that  he  has  no  adherents  in 
France  but  the  principal  officers  of  his  army,  and  the  em- 
ployes civils  of  the  Government,  and  possibly  some  of  the 
new  proprietors ;  but  even  these  last  I  consider  doubt- 
ful. Notwithstanding  this  state  of  things  I  recommend 
to  your  lordship  to  make  peace  with  him  if  you  can  ac- 
quire all  the  objects  which  you  have  a  right  to  expect. 
All  the  powers  of  Europe  require  peace  possibly  more 
than  France  ;  and  it  would  not  do  to  found  a  new  system 
of  war  upon  the  speculations  of  any  individual  on 
what  he  sees  and  learns  in  one  corner  of  France.  If 
Buonaparte  becomes  moderate,  he  is  probably  as  good  a 
sovereign  as  we  can  desire  in  France,  if  he  does  not  we 
shall  have  another  war  in  a  few  years,  but  if  my  specu- 


IMPOSSIBILITIES.  83 

lations  are  well  founded  we  shall  have  all  France  against 
him  ;  time  will  have  been  given  for  the  supposed  dis- 
affection to  his  Government  to  produce  its  effect;  his 
diminished  resources  will  have  decreased  his  means  of 
corruption,  ami  it  may  be  hoped  that  he  will  be  engaged 
single-handed  against  insurgent  France  and  all  Europe. 
(To  Earl  Bathurst.  St.  Jean  de  Luz,  21  st  Xov.  1813.) 

MILITARY  IMPOSSIBILITIES. 

In  military  operations  there  are  some  things  which 
cannot  be  done ;  one  of  these  is  to  move  troops  in 
this  country  during  or  immediately  after  a  violent  fall 
of  rain  .  .  . 

Another  observation  which  I  have  to  submit  is,  that 
in  a  war  in  which  every  day  offers  a  crisis,  the  result  of 
which  may  affect  the  world  for  ages,  the  change  of  the 
scene  of  the  operations  of  the  British  army  would  put 
that  army  entirely  hors  de  combat  for  four  months  at  least, 
even  if  the  new  scene  were  Holland ;  and  they  would 
not  then  be  such  a  machine  as  this  army  is  ... 

Then  I  beg  you  to  observe,  that  whenever  you  extend 
your  assistance  to  any  country,  unless  at  the  same  time 
fresh  means  are  put  in  action,  the  service  is  necessarily 
stinted  in  all  its  branches  on  the  old  stage.  (To  Earl 
Bathurst.  St.  Jean  de  Luz,  '2lst  Dec.  1813.) 

DESIKE  OF  THE  FBENCH  TO  RID  THEMSELVES  OF 
X  APOLEON. 

Every  day's  experience  here  shows  the  desire  of  the 
people  to  shake  off  the  yoke  of  Napoleon.  It  is  a  curious 
circumstance  that  we  are  the  protectors  of  the  property 
of  the  inhabitants  against  the  plunder  of  their  own  armies, 
and  their  cattle,  property,  &c.,  are  driven  into  our  lines 
for  protection.  (To  Earl  Bathurst.  St.  Jean  de  Luz, 
1st  Jan.  1814.) 


84  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

DETESTATION  OF  BUONAPARTE. 

.  .  .  We  have  found  the  French  people  exactly  what  we 
might  expect  (not  from  the  lying  accounts  in  the  French 
newspapers,  copied  into  all  the  others  of  the  world,  and 
believed  by  everybody,  notwithstanding  the  internal 
sense  of  every  man  of  their  falsehood,  but)  from  what  we 
knew  of  the  Government  of  Napoleon,  and  the  oppres- 
sion of  all  descriptions  under  which  his  subjects  have 
laboured.  It  is  not  easy  to  describe  the  detestation  of 
this  man.  What  do  you  think  of  the  French  people  run- 
ning into  our  posts  for  protection  from  the  French  troops 
with  their  bundles  on  their  heads,  and  their  beds,  as  you 
recollect  to  have  seen  the  people  of  Portugal  and  Spain. 
(To  Lord  Burghersh.  St.  Jean  de  Luz,  14th  Jan.  1814.) 

CONTAGION. 

I  have  known  many  instances  of  contagion  in  military 
hospitals,  which  have  not  affected  in  some  instances  more 
than  the  room  or  ward  in  which  it  prevailed,  and  seldom 
extended  beyond  the  building ;  and  I  never  heard  before 
of  an  hospital  placed  in  quarantine  only  because  a  few 
soldiers  in  it  had  a  yellow  appearance  in  their  counte- 
nance. (To  the  Right  Hon.  Sir  II.  Wellesley,  KB. 
St.  Jean  de  Luz,  19th  Jan.  1814.) 

PRESERVATION  OF  PUBLIC  HEALTH. 
I  don't  object  to  any  law  which  has  for  its  object  the 
preservation  of  the  public  health,  but  I  believe  it  will  be 
admitted  that  those  charged  with  the  execution  of  those 
laws  are  required  to  proceed  with  discretion  ;  that  they 
ought  not  to  create  the  alarm,  inconvenience,  confusion, 
and  evil  which  have  been  the  consequence  of  the  mea- 
sures of  the  Ayuntamiento  of  Santander  upon  this  occa- 
sion without  due  ground ;  and  that  they  are  responsible 


TWO  DYNASTIES.  85 

for  their  conduct.  I  can  prove  that  there  was  not  the 
slightest  ground  for  the  measure  the  Ayuiitamiento  of 
Santander  adopted ;  and  that  so  far  from  the  military 
commandant  of  the  hospitals,  and  the  medical  gentlemen 
concurring  in  its  necessity,  the  first  intimation  they  re- 
ceived of  it  was  to  find  themselves  in  quarantine  under 
the  guard  of  the  Spanish  soldiers  of  the  garrison.  (To 
the  Minister  at  War.  Madrid,  St.  Jean  de  Luz,  2'3rd 
Jan.  1814.) 

THE  NAVIGATION  OF  THE  LAKES. 

I  believe  that  the  defence  of  Canada,  and  the  co- 
operation of  the  Indians,  depend  upon  the  navigation  of 
the  lakes :  and  I  see  that  both  Sir  G.  Prevost  and  Com- 
modore Barclay  complain  of  the  want  of  the  crews  of  two 
sloops  of  war.  Any  offensive  operation  founded  upon 
Canada  must  be  preceded  by  the  establishment  of  a  naval 
superiority  on  the  lakes . .  . 

The  prospect  in  regard  to  America  is  not  consoling. 
That  power  will  always  hang  on  the  skirts  of  Great 
Britain  unless  there  should  be  some  change  in  her  own 
situation  ;  or  the  state  of  the  Spanish  colonies  should 
make  an  alteration,  not  only  in  America  in  general  but 
in  the  colonial  system  of  the  world  ;  or  our  own  colonies 
in  America  should  grow  so  fast,  as  that  with  very  little 
assistance  from  the  mother  country,  they  shall  be  equal 
to  their  own  defence.  (To  Earl Bathurst.  Garris,1-2nd 
Feb.  1814.) 

THE  Two  DYNASTIES. 

I  write  just  one  line  to  let  you  know  that  in  propor- 
tion as  we  advance,  I  find  the  sentiment  in  the  country 
still  more  strong  against  the  Buonaparte  dynasty,  and 


86  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

in  favour  of  the  Bourbons ;  but  I  am  quite  certain  there 
will  be  no  declaration  on  the  part  of  the  people,  if  the 
allies  do  not  in  some  manner  declare  themselves,  or  at 
all  events,  as  long  as  they  are  negotiating  with  Buona- 
parte any  declaration  from  us  would,  I  am  convinced, 
raise  such  a  flame  in  the  country  as  would  soon  spread 
from  one  end  of  it  to  the  other,  and  would  infallibly  over- 
turn him. 

I  cannot  discover  the  policy  of  not  hitting  one's  enemy 
as  hard  as  one  can,  and  in  the  most  vulnerable  place.  I 
am  certain  that  he  would  not  so  act  by  us  if  he  had  the 
opportunity.  He  would  certainly  overturn  British  au- 
thority in  Ireland  if  it  were  in  his  power.  (To  the  Earl 
of  Liverpool.  St.  Sevec,  4th  March,  1814.) 

EVILS    INSEPARABLE    FEOM    WAR. 

What  has  occurred  in  the  last  six  years  in  the  Penin- 
sula should  be  an  example  to  all  military  men  on  this 
point,  and  should  induce  them  to  take  especial  care  to 
endeavour  to  conciliate  the  country  which  is  the  seat  of 
war,  by  preserving  the  most  strict  discipline  among  the 
troops,  by  mitigating  as  much  as  possible  the  evils  which 
are  inseparable  from  war,  and  by  that  demeanour  in  the 
officers  in  particular  towards  the  inhabitants  which  will 
show  them  that  they  at  least  do  not  encourage  the  evils 
which  they  suffer  from  the  soldiers,  and  will  afford  the 
inhabitants  some  hope  that  the  evils  will  be  redressed 
and  will  be  of  short  duration. 

All  soldiers  are  inclined  to  plunder,  and  can  be  pre- 
vented only  by  the  constant  attention  and  exertion  of 
the  officers;  and  I  earnestly  entreat  you  to  urge  those 
of  the  army  under  your  command  to  attend  to  these 
circumstances.  (To  Gen.  Dom.  M.  Freyre.  St.  Scvec, 
6th  March,  1814.) 


BORDEAUX.  87 

THE  BOLRBOX  PARTY. 

There  is  a  large  party  at  Bordeaux  in  favour  of  the 
House  of  Bourbon,  and  I  beg  you  to  adhere  to  the  fol- 
lowing instructions  in  regard  to  this  party  and  their  views. 

If  they  should  ask  for  your  consent  to  proclaim  Louis 
XVIII.,  to  hoist  the  white  standard,  &c.,  you  will  state 
that  the  British  nation  and  their  allies  wish  well  to 
Louis  XVIII.;  and  as  long  as  the  public  peace  is  pre- 
served where  our  troops  are  stationed,  we  shall  not  in- 
terfere to  prevent  that  party  from  doing  what  may  be 
deemed  most  for  its  interest ;  nay  further,  that  I  am 
prepared  to  assist  any  party  that  may  show  itself  inclined 
to  aid  us  in  getting  the  better  of  Buonaparte. 

That  the  object  of  the  allies  in  the  war,  however,  and 
above  all,  in  entering  France,  is  as  stated  in  my  procla- 
mation, Peace;  and  that  it  is  well  known  the  allies  are 
now  engaged  in  negotiating  a  treaty  of  peace  with 
Buonaparte.  That  however  I  might  be  inclined  to  aid 
and  support  any  set  of  people  against  Buonaparte  while 
at  war,  I  could  give  them  no  further  aid  when  peace 
should  be  concluded ;  and  I  beg  the  inhabitants  will 
weigh  this  matter  well  before  they  raise  a  standard 
against  the  Government  of  Buonaparte,  and  involve 
themselves  in  hostilities. 

If,  however,  notwithstanding  this  warning,  the  town 
should  think  proner  to  hoist  the  white  standard,  and 
should  proclaim  Louis  XVIII.,  or  adopt  any  other 
measure  of  that  description,  you  will  not  oppose  them, 
and  you  will  arrange  with  the  authorities  the  means  of 
drawing  without  loss  of  time  for  all  the  arms,  ammuni- 
tion, &c.,  which  are  at  Dax,  which  you  will  deliver  to  them. 

If  the  municipality  should  state  that  they  will  not 
proclaim  Louis  XVIII.  without  your  orders,  you  will 


88  WORDS    OF    WELLINGTON. 

decline  to  give  such  orders  for  the  reasons  above  stated. 
(To  Marshal  Sir  W.  C.  Beresford,  K.B.  St.  Sevec, 
7th  March,  1814.) 

MARSHAL  SOULT. 

We  beat  Marshal  Soult  completely  on  the  27th 
February,  near  Orthez.  His  loss  was  immense  in  the 
action,  and  has  been  greater  since  by  the  general  deser- 
tion of  his  troops.  We  pursued  after  the  battle,  and 
crossed  the  Adour  at  this  place  on  the  1st,  but  on  that 
evening  a  violent  storm  came  on,  which  filled  all  the 
rivers  and  torrents,  carried  away  our  bridges  of  pon- 
toons, cut  off  all  our  communications  for  the  movement 
of  our  troops,  supplies,  &c.,  and  I  have  been  obliged  to 
halt  to  remedy  the  evil.  In  the  meantime  I  have  de- 
tached Marshal  Beresford  with  a  considerable  corps 
towards  Bordeaux,  and  I  intend  myself  to  follow  the 
movements  of  the  enemy  with  the  great  body  of  the 
army  towards  Auch. 

I  find  the  whole  population  in  this  part  of  the  country 
decidedly  hostile  to  Buonaparte's  Government,  and 
generally  desirous  for  the  restoration  of  the  Bourbon 
family ;  and  I  am  quite  certain  that  if  the  allies  were 
to  declare  in  their  favour  there  is  not  a  soul  in  this  part 
of  France  who  would  not  rise  in  the  cause.  (To  Lieut.' 
Col.  Lord  Burghersh,  St.  Sevec,  8th  March,  1814.) 

KING  JOSEPH'S  BAGGAGE. 

The  baggage  of  King  Joseph,  after  the  battle  of 
Vittoria,  fell  into  my  hands,  after  having  been  plun- 
dered by  the  soldiers;  and  I  found  among  it  an  imperial 
containing  prints,  drawings,  and  pictures. 

From  the  cursory  view  which  I  took  of  them,  the 
latter  did  not  appear  to  me  to  be  anything  remarkable. 


SPANISH  PICTURES.  89 

There  are  certainly  not  among  them  any  of  the  fine 
pictures  which  I  saw  in  Madrid  by  Raffaele  and  others ; 
and  I  thought  more  of  the  prints  and  drawings,  all  of 
the  Italian  school,  which  induced  me  to  believe  that  the 
whole  collection  was  robbed  in  Italy,  rather  than  in 
Spain.  I  sent  them  to  England,  and  having  desired 
that  they  should  be  put  to  rights,  and  those  cleaned  which 
required  it,  I  have  found  that  there  are  among  them 
much  finer  pictures  than  I  conceived  there  were,  and  as 
if  the  King's  palaces  have  been  robbed  of  pictures,  it  is 
not  improbable  that  some  of  his  may  be  among  them, 
and  I  am  desirous  of  restoring  them  to  his  Majesty,  I 
shall  be  much  obliged  to  you  if  you  will  mention  the 
subject  to  Don  J.  Luyando,  and  tell  him  that  I  request 
that  a  person  may  be  sent  to  London  to  see  them,  and 
to  fix  upon  those  belonging  to  his  Majesty.  (To  the 
Eight  Hon.  Sir  H.  Wellesley,  K.B.  Aire,  16th  March, 
1814.) 

THE  HEAD  OF  THE  ARMY. 

I  am  not  acting  as  an  individual,  I  am  at  the  head  of 
the  army,  and  the  confidential  agent  of  three  indepen- 
dent nations  ;  and  supposing  that  as  an  individual  I 
could  submit  to  have  my  views  and  intentions  in  such  a 
case  misrepresented,  as  the  general  of  the  allied  army  I 
cannot.  (To  H.R.H.  the  Due  (TAngouleme.  Seysses, 
"29th  March,  1814.) 

FALSE  REPORTS. 

You  are  quite  right  to  put  no  faith  in  reports  from 
the  coast  of  France.  There  are  more  false  reports  in 
France  than  even  in  Spain.  In  fact  between  the  Govern- 
ment, and  those  who  detest  the  Government,  there  is  no 
truth  in  France.  I  have  been  told  twenty  times  that 


9o  WORDS    OF    WELLINGTON. 

Buonaparte  was  dead,  that  he  had  died  of  a  wound,  was 
poisoned,  was  dead  of  the  gravel,  &c.,  &c.,  that  the  Con- 
gress was  dissolved,  that  there  was  an  insurrection  in 
La  Vendee,  in  Brittany,  &c.,  &c.,  the  whole  being 
false.  (To  Col.  Bunbury,  Under  Secretary  of  State. 
Seysses,  1st  April,  1814.) 

VITTOEIA  MEDALS. 

I  have  received  your  letter  of  the  16th  March,  re- 
garding the  recommendation  for  the  medals  for  the 
battle  of  Vittoria.  I  make  a  distinction  between  a  general 
action  in  which  we  pursue  the  enemy  from  the  ground, 
and  one  in  a  defensive  position.  This  distinction  is  fairly 
deducible  from  the  different  nature  of  the  operations. 

In  the  former  it  is  very  difficult  to  tell  who  is  and 
who  is  not  engaged  in  musketry.  All  are  at  times  to  a 
certain  degree  exposed  to  it ;  and  I  perfectly  recollect 
seeing  the  Household  Brigade  at  one  time  in  a  situation 
in  the  pursuit  in  which  they  were  so.  In  an  action  in 
a  defensive  position  there  are  always  some  troops  so 
situated  as  to  have  no  share  whatever  in  the  action  ; 
some  may  be  at  the  distance  of  miles  from  it,  and  in  those 
cases  I  apply  the  rule  strictly.  In  actions  such  as  Sala- 
manca and  Vittoria  I  don't.  (To  Col.  Torrens,  Military 
Secretary.  Seysses,  1st  April,  1814.) 

PEACE  THE  OBJECT  OF  THE  GOVERNMENT. 
The  object  of  the  Governments  that  I  have  the  honour 
to  serve  has  always  been  peace,  a  peace  founded  upon 
the  independence  of  their  respective  states,  and  that  of 
the  rest  of  the  European  Powers,  and  I  have  every 
reason  to  believe  that  the  ambassadors  of  these  august 
Sovereigns  are  at  present  engaged  in  concert  with  their 
allies  of  the  North  of  Europe,  at  Chatillon  sur  Seine, 


TOULOUSE.  91 

in  negotiating  such  a  peace,  if  it  is  possible  to  obtain 
it  with  the  existing  Government  of  France  (Translation). 
(To  the  Municipality  of  Toulouse.  Touluune,  12th  April, 
1814.) 

THE  BATTLE  OF  TOULOUSE. 

The  question  is  then  discussed,  who  won  the  battle 
of  Toulouse  ?  .  .  . 

The  battle  was  fought  on  the  10th  of  April ;  it  ended 
by  the  allied  army  bein<j  in  possession  of  all  the  works 
on  Mount  Celoinet,  and  (with  the  exception  of  the 
Faubourg  Guillemeire,  and  its  fortified  posts  at  Sucarin 
and  Cambon)  of  all  the  ground  on  the  right  of  the  Canal 
de  Languedoc,  and  their  posts  of  cavalry  on  the  bridges 
of  the  canal  above  the  town. 

On  the  llth  of  April,  Marshal  Soult  wrote  a  letter 
to  the  Ministre  de  la  Guerre,  and  to  Marshal  Suchet, 
in  which  he  clearly  indicated  what  must  be  the  result 
of  the  previous  day's  battle.  He  states  the  probability 
of  his  retiring  from  Toulouse.  On  the  same  day  he 
made  all  the  preparations,  arrangements  and  disposi- 
tions for  the  retreat  which  was  made  on  that  night.  .  . 

M.  Choumara  contends  that  Marshal  Soult,  having 
remained  in  Toulouse  for  twenty-four  hours  after  the 
battle,  won  the  battle  of  Toulouse,  as  the  allies  had  in 
1810  won  the  battle  of  Busaco,  their  position  having 
been  turned  by  Marshal  Massena  after  his  army  had 
been  repulsed,  and  the  allies  having  abandoned  Coim- 
bra.  There  is  this  difference  in  the  two  cases.  The 
battle  of  Busaco  was  fought  fifteen  miles  from  Coimbra. 
The  French  army  gained  no  part  of  the  position  of  the 
allies  in  the  battle  of  Busaco,  not  even  a  mamclon.  They 
were  totally  and  entirely  defeated  and  repulsed  at  all 
points.  The  result  of  the  battle  gave  Marshal  Massena 


92  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

no  facility  in  making  his  subsequent  movement  to  turn 
the  position  of  the  allies.  In  the  battle  of  Toulouse 
the  allies  carried,  after  a  most  desperate  struggle,  the 
key  of  the  fortified  position  of  the  French  army ;  the 
most  important  point  in  it,  according  to  the  opinion  of 
Marshal  Soult,  the  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  allies, 
and  every  officer  concerned  on  either  side.  They  held 
undisturbed  possession  of  this  position.  From  their 
ground  they  could  by  their  fire  prevent  the  occupation 
of  the  remainder  of  the  position  of  their  enemy.  The 
possession  of  it  gave  them  the  means  of  which  advan- 
tage was  taken  to  cut  off  the  retreat  of  their  enemy ; 
and  their  advanced  troops  were  actually  on  the  night  of 
the  llth  on  the  ground  over  which  Marshal  Soult  was 
under  the  necessity  of  passing  on  the  same  night  in  his 
retreat.  Marshal  Soult  left  in  Toulouse  about  1,600 
prisoners,  three  general  officers,  and  several  pieces  of 
cannon.  None  were  in  Coimbra  in  1810  after  Busaco. 
But  there  is  another  remarkable  difference  between  the 
affairs  at  Toulouse  and  at  Busaco.  The  French  army 
left  at  Coimbra,  when  they  passed  that  town  after  the 
battle,  not  less  than  6,000  sick  and  wounded,  who  were 
captured  in  the  town  in  little  more  than  a  week  by  Gen. 
Trant.  The  battle  of  Toulouse  had  no  resemblance  to 
the  battle  of  Busaco.  M.  Choumara's  readers  will  judge 
which  party  won  it.  (Extracts  from  Memoranda  on 
"  Considerations  Militaires  sur  les  Memoires  du  Marechal 
Suchet,  et  sur  la  Bataille  de  Toulouse :  par  S.  Choumara, 
ancien  capitaine  du  Genie" 

BUONAPARTE  OVERTURNED. 

Upon  my  entrance  into  Toulouse  on  the  12th  inst. 
I  found  the  statues  of  Buonaparte  overturned,  and  the 


THE   SLAVE  TRADE.  93 

white  flag  flying,  and  everybody  wearing  the  white 
cockade.  (To  the  Minister  at  War,  Madrid  Toulouse, 
Uth  April,  1814.) 

CRAMPED  BY  INSTRUCTIONS. 

In  regard  to  my  proceedings  here  I  was  bound  by 
my  instructions,  and  cramped  by  the  total  ignorance  in 
which  I  was  of  the  state  of  the  negotiations  at  Chatillon. 
You  in  England  gallop  very  fast,  and  you  think  that 
everything  ought  to  go  on  as  it  appears  to  you.  You 
forget,  however,  now  and  then  that  your  officers  are 
very  strictly  instructed,  and  that  those  who  mean  to  serve 
their  country  well  must  obey  their  instruction?,  however 
fearless  they  may  be  of  responsibility.  Indeed  I  attri- 
bute this  fearlessness  very  much  to  the  determination 
never  to  disobey,  as  long  as  the  circumstances  exist 
under  which  an  order  is  given.  (To  E.  Cooke,  Esq., 
Under  Secretary  of  Stale.  Toulouse,  16th  April,  1814.) 

THE  SLAVE  TRADE. 

I  was  not  aware  till  I  had  been  here  some  time,  of  the 
degree  of  frenzy  existing  here  about  the  slave  trade, 
and  I  am  unable  to  describe  it  to  you.  People  in  gene- 
ral appear  to  think  that  it  would  suit  the  policy  of  the 
nation  to  go  to  war  to  put  an  end  to  that  abominable 
traffic,  and  many  wish  that  we  should  take  the  field  on 
this  new  crusade.  All  agree  that  no  favour  can  be 
shown  to  a  slave-trading  country  ;  and  as  Spain  next  to 
Portugal  is  supposed  to  be  the  country  which  gives 
most  protection  to  this  trade,  the  interests  and  wishes 
of  Spain  are  but  little  attended  to  here.  Besides,  it  is 
not  easy  to  describe  the  unpopularity  attached  to  the 
king's  name,  from  the  occurrences  at  his  return  to 
Madrid.  The  newspapers  afford  some  specimen  of  it, 


94  WORDS   OF  WELLINGTON. 

but  at  a  late  dinner  at  Guildhall  I  recommended  to  the 
Lord  Mayor  to  drink  the  King  of  Spain's  health,  and 
he  told  me  that  he  was  become  so  unpopular  in  the  city, 
he  was  afraid  that  if  the  toast  were  not  positively  re- 
fused it  would  at  least  be  received  with  so  much  disgust 
as  to  render  it  very  disagreeable  to  me,  and  to  every 
well  wisher  to  the  Spanish  Government.  (To  the  Bight 
Hon.  Sir  H.  Wellesley,  K.B.  London,  20th  July,  1814.) 

THE  SLAVE  TRADE. 

You  do  me  justice  in  believing  that  I  will  pursue 
with  all  the  zeal  of  which  I  am  capable,  the  object  of 
the  abolition  of  the  slave  trade  by  France. 
There  are  but  few  persons  now  in  France  who  have 
turned  their  attention  to  the  slave  trade,  and  those 
few  are  proprietors  in  the  colonies,  or  speculators  in 
the  trade,  and  interested  in  carrying  it  on.  I  am  sorry 
to  say  that  there  is  a  very  large  interest  of  the  former 
in  the  House  of  Peers  ;  and  it  is  not  easy  to  believe 
what  an  influence  the  proprietors  of  St.  Domingo  have 
on  all  the  measures  of  the  Government.  The  proposi- 
tion to  abolish  the  slave  trade  is  foolishly  enough  con- 
nected with  other  recollections  of  the  revolutionary 
days  of  1789  and  1790,  and  is  generally  unpopular.  It 
is  not  believed  that  we  are  in  earnest  about  it,  or  have 
abolished  the  trade  on  the  score  of  its  inhumanity.  It 
is  thought  to  have  been  a  commercial  speculation,  and 
by  some  to  have  been  occasioned  by  the  Continental 
system ;  and  that  having  abolished  the  trade  ourselves, 
with  a  view  to  prevent  the  undue  increase  of  colonial 
produce  in  our  stores,  of  which  we  could  not  dispose, 
we  now  want  to  prevent  other  nations  from  cultivating 
their  colonies  to  the  utmost  of  their  power.  (70  W. 
Wilberforce,  Esq.,  M.P.  Paris,  15th  Sept.  1814.) 


SLAVERY  QUESTION.  95 

FORTIFIED  PLACES. 

The  operations  of  the  revolutionary  war  have  tended 
in  some  degree  to  put  strong  places  out  of  fashion;  and 
an  opinion  prevails  which  has  beer,  a  good  deal  con- 
firmed by  the  operations  of  the  last  campaign,  that  strong 
places  are  but  little  useful,  and  at  all  events  are  not 
worth  the  expense  which  they  cost.  Much  may  be 
urged  against  these  new  doctrines  as  applicable  to  any 
theatre  of  war,  but  in  respect  to  that  under  discussion, 
it  is  only  necessary  to  remind  those  who  are  to  consider 
and  decide  upon  the  subject  that  in  the  war  of  the  revolu- 
tion the  whole  of  the  Austrian  Netherlands  and  the  Pays 
de  Liege,  from  the  French  frontiers  to  the  Meuse,  those 
very  provinces  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  enemy  in  conse- 
quence of  one  unsuccessful  battle,  of  no  very  great  import- 
ance in  itself,  fought  near  Mons  ;  that  the  allies  regained 
them  with  equal  rapidity  in  the  following  campaign,  when 
they  had  a  superiority  offeree;  and- that,  very  imperfect 
field  works  only  having  been  thrown  up  at  some  points 
during  the  period  of  their  possession  by  the  allies,  the 
enemy  did  not  find  it  so  easy  as  they  had  before,  and  it 
required  much  more  time  to  get  possession  of  the  coun- 
try, when  the  enemy  regained  the  superiority  of  force 
in  the  year  1794,  notwithstanding  that  that  superiority 
was  much  more  commanding  than  it  had  been  in  No- 
vember, 1792.  (Extract  from  Memorandum  on  the 
defence  of  the  frontier  of  the  Netherlands.  Paris,  22nd 
Sept.  1814.) 

THE  SLAVERY  QUESTION. 

You  judge  most  correctly  regarding  the  state  of  the 
public  mind  here  upon  this  question  (abolition  of  sla- 
very). Not  only  is  there  no  information,  but  because 


96  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

England  takes  an  interest  in  the  question,  it  is  impos- 
sible to  convey  any  through  the  only  channel  which 
would  be  at  all  effectual,  viz.  the  daily  press.  Nobody 
reads  anything  but  the  newspapers ;  but  it  is  impossible 
to  get  anything  inserted  in  any  French  newspaper  in 
Paris  in  favour  of  the  abolition,  or  even  to  show  that 
the  trade  was  abolished  in  England  from  motives  of 
humanity.  The  extracts  made  from  English  newspapers 
upon  this,  or  any  other  subject,  are  selected  with  a  view 
either  to  turn  our  conduct  or  principles  into  ridicule,  or 
to  exasperate  against  us  still  more  the  people  of  this 
country,  and  therefore  the  evil  cannot  be  remedied  by 
good  publications  in  the  daily  press  in  England  with  a 
view  to  their  being  copied  into  the  newspapers  here. 
.  .  .  I  must  say  that  the  daily  press  in  England  do 
us  a  good  deal  of  harm  in  this  as  well  as  in  other  ques- 
tions. We  are  sure  of  the  king  and  his  government,  if 
he  could  rely  upon  the  opinion  of  his  people,  but  as  long 
as  our  press  teems  with  writings  drawn  with  a  view  to 
irritate  persons  here,  we  shall  never  be  able  to  exercise 
the  influence  which  we  ought  to  have  upon  this  question, 
and  which  we  really  possess.  (To  W.  Wilberforce,  Esq., 
M.P.  Paris,  8th  Oct.  1814.) 

FBENCH  NEUTRALITY. 

The  objectionable  rule  in  the  French  system  of  neu- 
trality is  that  in  a  war  with  Great  Britain  the  privateers 
or  ships  of  war  of  the  two  nations  should  find  an  asylum 
in  a  French  port  on  any  account  excepting  when  driven 
here  by  stress  of  weather.  The  abstract  principle  of 
such  a  rule  may  be  fair  enough ;  but  when  applied  to 
the  situation  of  the  two  belligerents,  and  when  it  is  con- 
sidered that  an  American  privateer,  or  ship  of  war,  is  in 
these  seas  solely  for  the  purposes  of  hostility  against  the 


MLLE.  RANCOURT.  97 

British  trade,  and  that  this  hostility  could  not  be  carried 
on  if  she  had  not  this  asylum  in  a  French  port,  it  will 
appear  very  unfair  and  highly  disadvantageous  to  Great 
Britain.  (To  Viscount  Castlereagh,  K.G.  Paris,  18th 
Oct.  1814.) 

NEWSPAPERS  AND  THE  SLAVE-TRADE. 

I  have  had  no  reason  to  complain  of  the  newspapers 
lately  on  the  subject  of  the  slave-trade,  and  I  hope  they 
will  continue  not  to  notice  it  for  some  little  time  longer. 
(To  W.  Wilberforce,  Esq.,  M.P.  Paris,  4th  Nov.  1814.) 

BUONAPARTE. 

Buonaparte  governed  one  half  of  Europe  directly,  and 
almost  the  other  half  indirectly.  (  To  General Dumourier. 
Paris,  26th  Nov.  1814.) 

OBJECT  IN  ABOLISHING  THE  SLAVE-TRADE. 

I  was  yesterday  told  gravely  by  the  Directeur  de  la 
Marine  that  one  of  our  objects  in  abolishing  the  slave- 
trade  was  to  get  recruits  to  fight  our  battles  in  Ame- 
rica !  !  !  and  it  was  hinted  that  a  man  might  as  well  be 
a  slave  for  agricultural  labour  as  a  soldier  for  life ;  and 
that  the  difference  was  not  worth  the  trouble  of  dis- 
cussing it.  (To  W.  Wilberforce,  Esq.,  M.P.  Paris, 
\±th  Dec.  1814.) 

REFUSAL  TO  BURY  MLLE.  RANCOURT. 

The  celebrated  actress  Mile.  Rancourt  died  a  few 
days  ago,  and  her  fellow  comedians  determined  to  bury 
her  at  St.  Roch,  and  proceeded  thither  in  a  body,  at- 
tended by  an  immense  mob,  on  Tuesday.  The  actors 
of  the  Theatre  Franqais  having  been  excommunicated, 
I  imagine,  in  the  reign  of  Louis  XV.,  the  curate  of  St. 
u 


98  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

Roch  refused  to  receive  the  body  into  the  church,  or  to 
administer  the  usual  rites ;  and  the  mob  broke  open  the 
church  doors,  and,  having  introduced  the  body,  forced 
the  curate  to  perform  the  service. 

The  King  in  the  meantime  having  been  informed  of 
what  was  passing,  sent  one  of  his  chaplains,  attended  by 
some  of  the  Gardes  du  Corps,  to  perform  the  service ; 
and  the  mob,  among  whom  had  been  heard  the  cries  of 
"  Les  Pretres  a  la  lanterne,"  dispersed  with  the  cries  of 
"ViveleRoi."  (Jo  Viscount  Castlereagh,  K.G.  Paris, 
19th  Jan.  1815.) 

WHAT  BBOUGHT  BUONAPARTE  BACK. 

It  is  the  desire  for  war,  particularly  in  the  army,  that 
has  brought  Buonaparte  back,  and  has  formed  for  him 
any  party,  and  has  given  him  any  success,  and  all  my 
observations  when  at  Paris  convinced  me  that  it  was  the 
King  alone  who  kept  Europe  at  peace,  and  that  the  dan- 
ger which  most  immediately  threatened  his  Majesty 
was  to  be  attributed  to  his  desire  to  maintain  the  peace 
contrary  to  the  wishes  not  only  of  the  army  but  of  the 
majority  of  his  subjects,  of  some  of  his  ministers,  and 
even  of  some  of  his  family.  (To  Viscount  Castlereagh, 
K.G.  Vienna,  26th  March,  1815.) 

A  SURPRISING  APPLICATION. 

I  have  had  the  honour  of  receiving  your  letter  of  the 
28th  April,  applying  to  me  to  be  employed  with  this 
army,  which,  considering  that  you  are  at  the  Horse 
Guards,  has  not  a  little  surprised  me. 

If  you  will  speak  to  Sir  H.  Torrens,  he  will  tell  you 
that  I  have  nothing  to  say  to  any  appointment  to  the 
staff  of  this  army  of  any  rank. 


ATTACKING   THE  ABSENT.  99 

However  flattered  I  may  be,  and  however  I  may  ap- 
plaud the  desire  of  an  officer  to  serve  under  my  com- 
mand in  the  field,  it  is  impossible  for  me  to  recommend 
officers  for  employment  with  whose  merits  I  am  not  ac- 
quainted, in  preference  to  those  to  whose  services  I  am 
so  much  indebted,  particularly  if  the  latter  desire  to 
serve  again.  But,  as  I  before  stated,  I  have  no  choice, 
and  i  beg  you  to  apply  in  the  quarter  in  which  you  will 
certainly  succeed,  without  reference  to  my  wishes,  when- 
ever there  shall  be  a  command  vacant  for  you,  which 
there  is  not  at  present.  (To  Major- General  Darling. 
Bruxelles,  '2nd  May,  1815.) 

ATTACKING  THE  ABSENT  IN  PARLIAMENT. 

.  .  The  mode  of  attacking  a  servant  of  the  public 
absent  on  public  business,  day  after  day,  in  speeches  in 

Parliament,  which  has  lately  been  adopted  by , 

appears  to  me  most  extraordinary  and  unprecedented. 

If  I  have  done  anything  wrong  or  unbecoming  my 
own  character,  or  that  of  the  station  I  filled,  I  ought  to 
be  prosecuted  or  at  least  censured  for  it,  in  consequence 
of  a  specific  motion  on  the  subject ;  but  it  is  not  fair  to 
give  to  the  act  of  any  individual  a  construction  it  will 
not  fairly  bear,  a  construction  which  no  man  breathing 
believes  it  was  intended  to  bear  ;  .and  to  charge  him 
home  with  being  an  assassin,  day  after  day  in  speeches, 
and  never  in  form. 

I  say  first,  that  the  Declaration  has  never  been 
accurately  translated  ;  and  the  meaning  of  the  words 
vindicte  publique  is  not  "public  vengeance,"  but  "public 
justice."  But  even  if  the  meaning  was  "  public  ven- 
geance," the  Declaration  does  not  deliver  Buonaparte 
over  to  the  dagger  of  the  assassin.  When  did  the  dag- 
ger of  the  assassin  execute  the  vengeance  of  the  public:' 


ioo  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

In  regard  to  his  being  declared  "  hors  le  loi ;"  first,  it 
must  be  recollected  at  what  period  and  under  what  cir- 
cumstances he  was  so  declared.  The  period  was  the 
13th  of  March,  and  although  we  knew  Buonaparte  had 
landed  and  had  made  progress  in  France  sufficient  to 
create  a  contest  there,  we  were  not  aware  that  he  could 
be  established  without  firing  a  shot.  The  object  then  of 
this  part  of  the  publication  was  to  strengthen  the  hands 
of  the  King  of  France  by  the  opinion  of  the  Congress. 

Secondly,  was  he  not  "  hors  la  loi  ?  "  and  had  he  or  not 
broken  all  the  ties  which  connected  him  with  the  world  ? 
The  only  treaty  by  which  he  was  connected  with  the 
world,  was  that  at  Fontainebleau  ;  that  he  broke. 

Having  quitted  his  asylum  he  landed  in  France  with 
such  a  force  as  showed  that  he  relied  solely  upon 
treachery  and  rebellion,  not  only  for  success  but  for 
safety.  He  incurred  all  risks  in  order  to  gain  the  great- 
est prize  in  Europe,  one  which  he  had  abandoned  only  ten 
months  before  under  a  treaty  with  the  Allied  Powers ; 
and  is  it  possible  that  it  can  be  gravely  asserted  that 
Buonaparte,  an  individual  like  any  other,  should  have 
been  guilty  by  this  act  of  only  a  breach  of  treaty  ?  If 
he  was  guilty  of  more,  of  which  there  can  be  no  doubt, 
it  was  of  the  crime  of  rebellion  and  treason,  with  a  view 
to  usurp  the  sovereign  authority  of  France;  a  crime 
which  has  always  been  deemed  "  hors  la  loi "  so  far  as 
this,  that  all  sovereigns  have  in  all  times  called  upon 
their  subjects  to  raise  their  arms  to  protect  them  from 
him  who  was  guilty  of  it.  The  Declaration  does  no  more. 
This  is  my  reasoning  upon  the  subject.  ...  I  never 
knew  any  paper  so  discussed  as  the  Declaration  was  ; 
and  I  believe  there  never  was  a  public  paper  so  success- 
ful, particularly  in  Italy  and  France.  (To  the  Right 
Hon.  W.  Wdlesley  Pole.  Bruxelles,  5th  May,  1815.) 


CLV  THE  DEFENSIVE.  101 

REFUSAL  TO  GRANT  MATERIALS  FOR  A  HISTORY 
OF  TUB  WAR. 

I  return  Sir  W.  Stewart's  letter  of  the  13th  April.  I 
perfectly  recollect  the  letter  to  which  he  refers.  It  ap- 
peared to  me  to  be  written  in  the  anguish  of  mind  occa- 
sioned by  the  loss  he  had  sustained  in  his  action,  and  by 
his  own  sufferings,  and  that  it  did  not  do  justice  to 
himself  or  to  his  troops ;  and  I  did  not  send  it  home  or 
communicate  it  to  anybody,  I  believe,  certainly  not  to 
Mr.  Philippart  or  to  any  other  person  calling  himself  an 
author.  Indeed,  I  have  invariably  refused  to  commu- 
nicate to  any  person  documents  to  enable  him  to  write 
a  history  of  the  late  war  ;  as  I  consider  the  transactions 
too  recent  for  any  person  to  write  a  true  history,  with- 
out hurting  the  feelings  of  nations  and  of  some  indi- 
viduals. (To  Lieut.- Gen.  Lord  Hill,  G.C.B.  BntxeUes, 
9th  May,  1815.) 

ON  THE  DEFENSIVE. 

.  .  .  In  the  situation  in  which  we  are  placed  at 
present,  neither  at  war  nor  at  peace,  unable  on  that  ac- 
count to  patrol  up  to  the  enemy  and  ascertain  his  posi- 
tion by  view,  or  to  act  offensively  upon  any  part  of  his 
line,  it  is  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  to  combine  an  opera- 
tion, because  there  are  no  data  on  which  to  found  an  y 
combination.  All  we  can  do  is  to  put  our  troops  in  such 
a  situation,  as  in  case  of  a  sudden  attack  by  the  enemy, 
to  render  it  easy  to  assemble,  and  to  provide  against  the 
chance  of  any  being  cut  off  from  the  rest.  (To  H.P.H. 
The  Prince  of  Orange,  G.C.B.  Bruxelles,  lltk  May, 
1815.) 


102  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

THE  FULL  VALUE  TO  BE  GIVEN. 

In  no  well-regulated  country  can  the  property  of  sub- 
jects be  taken  from  them  for  less  than  its  fair  value  ;  and 
if  any  public  burden  is  to  be  borne  by  any  country,  it 
is  best  that  the  fiscal  means  of  imposing  it  should  pro- 
ceed regularly  from  the  sovereign  authority,  and  that 
each  individual  should  receive  the  full  value  of  his  pri- 
vate property  from  the  same  source.  ( To  His  Excel- 
lency Sir  C.  Stuart,  G.C.B.  Bruxelles,  13th  May,  1815.) 

M.  DE  STEIN'S  PAPER. 

I  cannot  conclude  without  expressing  my  regret  that 
such  a  paper  as  M.  de  Stein's  should  have  been  pro- 
duced by  the  Prussian  Legation.  In  a  crisis  of  the 
affairs  of  the  world,  the  Powers  of  Europe  are  about  to 
embark  in  a  great  contest ;  and  Great  Britain,  interested 
only  in  a  secondary  degree  in  the  crisis,  that  can  be  in- 
jured only  in  the  injury  which  others  will  suffer,  comes 
forward  with  all  her  resources,  and  not  only  puts  forth 
all  the  strength  which  circumstances  and  her  situation 
enable  her  to  collect,  but  assists  with  money  all  the 
Powers  of  Europe,  small  as  well  as  great,  in  proportion 
to  their  several  exertions,  and  this  at  a  moment  of  un- 
paralleled financial  difficulty,  occasioned  by  her  exertions 
in  a  similar  manner,  in  the  last  years  of  the  late  war. 

I  should  be  sorry  that  public  men  in  England  ever 
became  disgusted  with  the  affairs  of  the  Continent,  and 
that  the  interest  felt  in  its  concerns  should  be  diminished; 
and  in  this  sense  it  is,  and  adverting  to  the  impression 
which  M.  de  Stein's  paper  has  made  upon  my  mind,  that 
I  regret  that  such  a  document  was  ever  allowed  to  be 
brought  forward.  (To  the  Earl  of  Clancarty,  G.C.B. 
Bruxelles,  Uth  May,  1815.) 


THE  BOURBONS  AND  PEACE.  103 

THE  FOUNDATION   OF  BUONAPARTE'S  POWER 
IN  FRANCE. 

Buonaparte's  power  in  France  is  founded  upon  the 
military  and  upon  nothing  else,  and  the  military  must  be 
destroyed  or  appeased  before  the  people  can  or  rather 
dare  speak.  To  work  effectually  against  the  French 
army  in  France,  numerous  armies  are  necessary.  Then 
the  people  may  be  able  to  speak  and  act  without,  run- 
ning the  risk  of  being  effectually  destroyed.  (Transla- 
tion.) (To  the  Comic  de  Blacas.  Bruxelles>  16th  May, 
1815.) 

THE  BOURBONS  AND  PEACE. 

I  have  frequently  told  your  Highness,  and  every  day's 
experience  shows  me  that  I  am  right,  that  the  only 
chance  of  peace  for  Europe  consists  in  the  establishment 
in  France  of  the  legitimate  Bourbons.  The  establish- 
ment of  any  other  Government,  whether  in  the  person  of 
or  in  a  Regency  in  the  name  of  young  Napo- 
leon, or  in  any  other  individual,  or  in  a  republic,  must 
lead  to  the  maintenance  of  large  military  establishments 
to  the  ruin  of  all  the  Governments  of  Europe,  till  it  shall 
suit  the  convenience  of  the  French  Government  to  com- 
mence a  contest  which  can  be  directed  only  against  you, 
or  others  for  whom  we  are  interested.  In  this  contest 
we  shall  feel  the  additional  difficulty  that  those  who  are 
now  on  our  side  will  then  be  against  us,  and  you  will 
again  find  yourself  surrounded  by  enemies.  I  am  con- 
vinced that  the  penetration  of  your  Highness  will  have 
shown  you  the  danger  of  all  these  schemes  to  the  inte- 
rests of  the  Emperor  ;  and  that  you  will  defeat  them  all 
by  firmly  adhering  to  that  line  of  conduct  (in  which  you 
will  find  us  likewise)  which  will  finally  lead  to  the 


io4  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

establishment  in  France  of  the  legitimate  Government, 
from  which  alone  Europe  can  expect  any  genuine  peace. 
(To  H.  H.  Prince  Metternich.  Bruxelles,  20th  May, 
1815.) 

PROCURING  INTELLIGENCE. 

There  is  a  good  deal  of  charlatanisms  in  what  is  called 
procuring  intelligence,  as  there  is  in  everything  else. 
(To  Earl  Bathurst.  Bruxelles,  22nd  May,  1815.) 

THE  WORTH  or  THE  "MONITEUR"  ARTICLES. 

.  .  It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  assure  your  Lord- 
ship that  I  have  not  issued  any  proclamation  or  order 
upon  any  political  subject  whatever;  and  I  should  rather 
imagine  that  the  contents  of  the  Moniteur  in  these  days, 
and  particularly  the  articles  proceeding  from  the  Govern- 
ment, are  as  little  worthy  of  credit  as  they  have  been 
at  all  former  periods.  The  object  of  this  system  of  de- 
lusion is  to  make  an  impression  in  France,  or  elsewhere, 
for  a  moment ;  and  if  that  object  is  accomplished  it  is 
supposed  that  all  is  gained.  But  where  the  truth  can 
be  known  it  is  quite  impossible  that  this  system  can 
have  any  other  effect  than  to  render  contemptible  its 
patron.  (To  Viscount  Castlereagh,  K.G.  Bruxelles, 
23rd  May,  1815.) 

POSITION  OF  THE  ARMY  AT  WATERLOO. 

The  position  which  I  took  up  in  front  of  Waterloo 
crossed  the  high  roads  from  Charleroi  and  Nivelles, 
and  had  its  right  thrown  back  to  a  ravine  near  Merke 
Braine,  which  was  occupied,  and  its  left  extended  to  a 
height  above  the  hamlet  Ter  La  Haye,  which  was  like- 
wise occupied.  In  front  of  the  right  centre,  and  near 
the  Nivelles  road,  we  occupied  the  house  and  gardens  of 


ARMY  AT  WATEELOO.  105 

Hougoumont,  which  covered  the  return  of  that  flank ; 
and  in  front  of  the  left  centre  we  occupied  the  farm  of 
La  Haye  Sainte.  By  our  left  we  communicated  with 
Marshal  Prince  Blucher,  at  Waore,  through  Oliami,  and 
the  marshal  had  promised  me  that  in  case  we  should  be 
attacked,  he  would  support  me  with  one  or  more 
corps,  as  might  be  necessary.  ...  In  Lieut.-Gen. 
Sir  T.  Picton  his  Majesty  has  sustained  the  loss  of  an 
officer  who  has  frequently  distinguished  himself  in  his 
service,  and  he  fell  gloriously,  leading  his  division  to  a 
charge  with  bayonets,  by  which  one  of  the  most  serious 
attacks  made  by  the  enemy  on  our  position  was  repulsed. 
The  Earl  of  Uxbridge,  after  having  successfully  got 
through  this  arduous  day,  received  a  wound  by  almost 
the  last  shot  fired,  which  will  I  am  afraid  deprive  his 
Majesty  for  some  time  of  his  services.  .  .  .  H.R.H. 
the  Prince  of  Orange  distinguished  himself  by  his  gal- 
lantry and  conduct,  till  he  received  a  wound  from  a 
musket  ball  through  the  shoulder,  which  obliged  him  to 
quit  the  field.  .  .  . 

I  should  not  do  justice  to  my  own  feelings,  or  to 
Marshal  Blucher  and  the  Prussian  army,  if  I  did  not 
attribute  the  successful  result  of  this  arduous  day  to  the 
cordial  and  timely  assistance  I  received  from  them.  The 
operation  of  General  Bulow  upon  the  enemy's  flank  was 
a  most  decisive  one,  and  even  if  I  had  not  found  myself 
in  a  situation  to  make  the  attack  which  produced  the 
result,  it  would  have  forced  the  enemy  to  retire  if  his 
attack  should  have  failed,  and  would  have  prevented  him 
from  taking  advantage  of  them  if  they  should  unfortu- 
nately have  succeeded.  (To  Earl  Bathurst.  Waterloo, 
19th  June,  1815.) 


io6  WORDS   OF    WELLINGTON. 

DEARLY-BOUGHT  GLORY. 

.  .  .  I  cannot  express  to  you  the  regret  and 
sorrow  with  which  I  look  around  me  and  contemplate 
the  loss  which  I  have  sustained,  particularly  in  your 
brother.  The  glory  resulting  from  such  actions,  so 
dearly  bought,  is  no  consolation  to  me,  and  I  cannot 
suggest  it  as  any  to  you  and  his  friends ;  but  I  hope 
that  it  may  be  expected  that  this  last  one  has  been  so 
decisive,  as  that  no  doubt  remains  that  our  exertions 
and  our  individual  losses  will  be  rewarded  by  the  early 
attainment  of  our  first  object.  It  is  then  that  the  glory 
of  the  actions  in  which  our  friends  and  relations  have 
fallen,  will  be  some  consolation  for  their  loss.  (To  the 
Earl  of  Aberdeen,  K.G.  Bruxelles,  19th  June,  1815.) 

REMAINS  OF  THE  FRENCH  ARMY. 

The  remains  of  the  French  army  have  retired  upon 
Laon.  All  accounts  agree  in  stating  that  it  is  in  a  very 
wretched  state,  and  that  in  addition  to  its  losses  in 
battle  and  in  prisoners,  it  is  losing  vast  numbers  of  men 
by  desertion.  The  soldiers  quit  their  regiments  in  par- 
ties, and  return  to  their  homes  ;  those  of  the  cavalry  and 
artillery,  selling  their  horses  to  the  people  of  the  country. 
(To  Earl  Bathurst.  Le  Cateau,  22rad  June,  1815.) 

NAPOLEON'S  DEATH-BLOW. 

.  .  .  I  may  be  wrong,  but  my  opinion  is,  that  we 
have  given  Napoleon  his  death-blow ;  from  all  I  hear 
his  army  is  totally  destroyed,  the  men  are  deserting  in 
parties,  even  the  generals  are  withdrawing  from  him.  The 
infantry  throw  away  their  arms,  and  the  cavalry  and 
artillery  sell  their  horses  to  the  people  of  the  country, 
and  desert  to  their  homes.  Allowing  for  much  exa<j- 


BUOXAPARTPS   FATE.  107 

geration  in  this  account,  and  knowing  that  Buonaparte 
can  still  collect,  in  addition  to  what  he  has  brought 
back  with  him,  the  5th  corps  (Tarmee  under  Rapp, 
which  is  near  Strasbourg,  and  the  3rd  corps,  which  was 
at  Waore  during  the  battle,  and  has  not  suffered  so 
much  as  the  others,  and  probably  some  troops  from  La 
Vendee,  I  am  still  of  opinion  that  he  can  make  no  head 
against  us,  quil  ria  qifa  se  pendre;  and  therefore  it 
appears  to  me  that  your  brother  would  derive  none  of 
the  advantages  from  his  service,  and  would  incur  all  the 
inconveniences  of  it.  (To  Lieut. -Gen.  the  Earl  of 
Uxbridge,  G.C.B.  Le  Cateau,  23rd  June,  1815.) 

CONTINUING  OPERATIONS. 

I  could  not  consider  Buonaparte's  abdication  of  a 
usurped  power  in  favour  of  his  son,  and  his  handing 
over  the  Government  provisionally  to  five  persons 
named  by  himself,  to  be  that  description  of  security 
which  the  Allies  had  in  view,  which  should  induce  them 
to  lay  down  their  arms,  and  therefore  I  continue  my 
operations.  All  accounts  concur  in  stating  that  it  is 
impossible  for  the  enemy  to  collect  an  army  to  make 
head  against  us.  (To  Earl  Bathurst.  Joneourt,  25th 
June,  1815.) 

BUONAPARTE'S  FATE. 

General has  been  here  this  day  to  negotiate  for 

Napoleon's  passing  to  America,  to  which  proposition  I 
have  answered  that  I  have  no  authority.  The  Prussians 
think  the  Jacobins  wish  to  give  him  over  to  me,  believ- 
ing that  I  will  save  his  life.  wishes  to  kill  him  ; 

but  I  have  told  him  that  I  shall  remonstrate,  and  shall 
insist  upon  his  being  disposed  of  by  common  accord.  I 


io8  WORDS  OF  WELLIXGTOX. 

have  likewise  said  that  as  a  private  friend  I  advised 
him  to  have  nothing  to  do  with  so  foul  a  transaction  ; 
that  he  and  I  had  acted  too  distinguished  parts  in  these 
transactions  to  become  executioners;  and  that  I  was 
determined  that  if  the  sovereigns  wished  to  put  him  to 
death  they  should  appoint  an  executioner,  which  should 
not  be  me.  ...  I  am  not  pleased  with  the  King's 
hesitation  about  Peroune.  I  have  behaved  in  such  a 
manner  to  him  that  he  ought  to  be  certain  I  would  not 
propose  anything  to  him  that  was  not  for  the  good  of  the 
cause,  which  is  his  interest  more  than  mine.  (To  His  Ex- 
cellency Sir  C.  Stuart,  G.C.B.  Orville,  28th  June,  1815.) 

A  POUNDING  MATCH. 

You  will  have  heard  of  our  battle  of  the  18th.  Never 
did  I  see  such  a  pounding  match.  Both  were  what  the 
boxers  call  "  gluttons."  Napoleon  did  not  manoeuvre  at 
all.  He  just  moved  forward  in  the  old  style  in  columns, 
and  was  driven  off  in  the  old  style.  The  only  difference 
was  that  he  mixed  cavalry  with  his  infantry,  and  sup- 
ported both  with  an  enormous  quantity  of  artillery. 

I  had  the  infantry  for  some  time  in  squares,  and  we 
had  the  French  cavalry  walking  about  us,  as  if  they  had 
been  our  own.  I  never  saw  the  British  infantry  behave 
so  well.  {To  Marshal  Lord  Beresford,  G.C.B.  Gonesse, 
2nd  July,  1815.) 

WELLINGTON  AND  THE  COMMISSIONERS. 

I  left  the  commissioners  at  Etrees,  and  went  to  the 
head-quarters  at  Le  Plessis  to  give  the  orders  for  the 
movement  of  the  troops  in  the  morning,  and  I  overtook 
them  again  in  the  night  at  Lonores.  I  then  told  them 
that  I  had  considered  their  last  question  since  I  had 


BATTLE  OF  WATERLOO.  109 

seen  them,  and  that  I  felt  no  objection  to  give  them  my 
opinion  upon  it,  still  as  an  individual;  that  in  my  opinion 
Europe  had  no  hope  of  peace  if  any  person  excepting  the 
King  was  called  to  the  throne  of  France ;  that  any 
person  so  called  must  be  considered  a  usurper,  whatever 
hi;;  rank  and  quality  ;  that  he  must  act  as  a  usurper, 
and  must  endeavour  to  turn  the  attention  of  the  country 
from  the  defects  of  his  title  towards  war  and  foreign 
conquest ;  that  the  Powers  of  Europe  must,  in  such  a 
case,  guard  themselves  against  this  evil ;  and  that  I 
could  only  assure  them  that,  unless  otherwise  ordered 
by  my  Government,  I  would  exert  any  influence  I 
might  possess  over  the  Allied  Sovereigns  to  induce  them 
to  insist  upon  securities  for  the  preservation  of  peace, 
besides  the  treaty  itself,  if  such  an  arrangement  as  they 
had  stated  were  adopted.  The  commissioners  replied 
that  they  perfectly  understood  me,  and  some  of  them 
added,  "  Rt  vous  avez  raison"  (2b  Earl  Bathurst. 
Gonesse,  2nd  July,  1815.) 

BAD  CONDUCT  OF  THE  ALLIES. 

You  will  have  heard  of  our  great  battle  in  Flanders, 
and  of  its  final  result  in  the  surrender  of  Buonaparte 
to  the  Bellerophon,  off  the  Isle  d'Aix,  and  if  the  Allies 
will  only  be  a  little  moderate,  that  is,  if  they  will  pre- 
vent plunder  by  their  troops,  and  take  only  what  is 
necessary  for  their  own  security,  we  may  hope  for  per- 
manent peace.  But  I  confess  that  I  am  a  little  afraid  of 
them.  They  are  all  behaving  exceedingly  ill.  ( To  the 
Eight  Hon.  Sir  H.  WeUesley,  G.C.B.  Paris,  \Sth  July, 
1815.) 

THE  BATTLE  OF  WATERLOO. 

The  battle  of  Waterloo  was  certainly  the  hardest 
fought  that  has  been  for  many  years,  I  believe,  and  has 


no  WORDS  OF   WELLINGTON. 

placed  iii  the  power  of  the  allies  the  most  important 
results.  We  are  throwing  them  away,  however,  by  the 
infamous  conduct  of  some  of  us  ;  and  I  am  sorry  to  add 
that  our  own  Government  also  are  taking  up  a  little  too 
much  of  the  tone  of  their  rascally  newspapers.  They 
are  shifting  their  objects  ;  and  having  got  their  cake 
they  want  both  to  eat  it  and  keep  it.  (To  Marshal 
Lord  Beresford,  G.C.B.  Paris,  7th  Aug.  1815.) 

HISTORY  OF  A  BATTLE  COMPARED  TO  THAT  OF 
A  BALL. 

I  have  received  your  letter  of  the  2nd,  regarding  the 
battle  of  Waterloo.  The  object  which  you  propose  to 
yourself  is  very  difficult  of  attainment,  and  if  really 
attained  is  not  a  little  invidious.  The  history  of  a  battle 
is  not  unlike  the  history  of  a  ball.  Some  individuals 
may  recollect  all  the  little  events  of  which  the  great 
result  is  the  battle  won  or  lost ;  but  no  individual  can 
recollect  the  order  in  which,  or  the  exact  moment  at 
which  they  occurred,  which  makes  all  the  difference  as 
to  their  value  or  importance.  Then  the  faults  or  the 
misbehaviour  of  some  gave  occasion  for  the  distinction 
of  others,  and  perhaps  were  the  cause  of  material  losses ; 
and  you  cannot  write  a  true  history  of  a  battle  without 
including  the  faults  and  misbehaviour  of  a  part  at  least 
of  those  engaged. 

Believe  me,  that  every  man  you  see  in  a  military 
uniform  is  not  a  hero;  and  that,  although  in  the  account 
given  of  a  general  action,  such  as  that  of  Waterloo, 
many  instances  of  individual  heroism  must  be  passed 
over  unrelated,  it  is  better  for  the  general  interests  to 
leave  those  parts  of  the  story  untold,  than  to  tell  the 
whole  truth.  (To ,  Esq.  Paris,  8th  Aug.  1815.) 


POSITION  OF  FRANCE.  in 

ACCOUNTS  NOT  TO  BE  RELIED  ON. 

I  have  received  your  letter  of  the  llth,  and  I  regret 
much  that  I  have  not  been  able  to  prevail  upon  you  to 
relinquish  your  plan  ;  you  may  depend  upon  it  you  will 

never  make  it  a  satisfactory  work 

Just  to  show  you  how  little  reliance  can  be  placed  even 
on  what  are  supposed  the  best  accounts  of  a  battle,  I 
mention  that  there  are  some  circumstances  mentioned 
in  Gen. 's  account  which  did  not  occur  as  he  re- 
lates them.  He  was  not  on  the  field  during  the  whole 
battle,  particularly  not  during  the  latter  part  of  it.  .  . 
The  battle  began,  I  believe,  at  eleven.  It  is  impossible 
to  say  when  each  important  occurrence  took  place,  nor 

in  what  order 

.     Remember,  I  recommend  you  to  leave  the 

battle  of  Waterloo  as  it  is.    (To ,Esq*   Paris, 

llth  Aug.  1815.) 

OBJECTIONS  TO  A  GENEBAL  COURT  MARTIAL. 

I  confess  that  I  feel  very  strong  objections  to  discu-s 
before  a  General  Court  Martial  the  conduct  of  any  indi- 
vidual in  such  a  battle  as  that  of  Waterloo.  It  generally 
brings  before  the  public  circumstances  which  might  as 
well  not  be  published;  anil  the  effect  is  equally  pro- 
duced by  obliging  him  who  has  behaved  ill  to  withdraw 
from  the  service.  ( To  H.  R.  H.  the  Duke  of  York. 
Paris,  \'lth  Sept.  1815.) 

THE   POSITION   OF  FRANCE. 

It  is  on  many  accounts  desirable,  as  well  for  their 
own  happiness  as  for  that  of  the  world,  that  the  people 


*  See  also  letter  on  p.  115. 


ii2  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

of  France,  if  they  do  not  already  feel  that  Europe  is 
too  strong  for  them,  should  be  made  sensible  of  it ;  and 
that  whatever  may  be  the  extent  at  any  time  of  their 
momentary  and  partial  success  against  any  one,  or  any 
number  of  individual  powers  in  Europe,  the  day  of  re- 
tribution must  come.  (To  Viscount  Castlereagh,  K.G. 
Paris,  23rd  Sept.  1815.) 

JUSTICE. 

I  had  already  heard  of  the  letter  which  your  Excel- 
lency has  sent  me  from  the  Due  d'Otrante  to  the  Prefet 
des  Bouches  du  Rhone-  Whatever  a  man  may  have 
done  during  a  revolution  which  has  lasted  for  twenty- 
five  years,  he  cannot,  consistently  with  any  principle,  be 
arrested  and  confined  in  an  arbitrary  manner,  if  it  is 
intended  to  put  an  end  to  the  revolution,  and  that  the 
country  should  be  governed  with  justice  and  according 
to  law.  On  these  grounds  I  cannot  disapprove  of  the 
letter  from  the  Due  d'Otrante,  whatever  may  have  been 
his  motive  for  writing  it.  (To  Admiral  Lord  Exmouth, 
G.C.B.  Paris,  26th  Sept.  1815.) 

RECOLLECTIONS. 

.  .  I  am  highly  gratified  by  your  Royal  High- 
ness' expressions  of  your  recollection  of  past  years  and 
events.  I  assure  your  Royal  Highness  that  you  made 
an  impression  upon  all  those  who  had  the  satisfaction  to 
be  near  you  at  that  period  which  will  not  easily  be 
effaced,  and  that  you  have  the  most  anxious  wishes  of 
us  all  for  your  prosperity  and  happiness.  As  to  my 
part,  I  shall  always  look  to  the  interesting  career  which 
you  have  to  run  with  an  anxiety  which  can  be  more 
easily  felt  than  described,  which  has  for  its  object  not 
only  your  own  individual  happiness,  but  the  security 


X/:nrSPAPER  "LIES."  n; 

and  happiness  of  the  civilized  world.      (To  H.  R.  H.  the 
Prince  of  Orange,  G.C.B.     Paris,  14th  Nov.  1815.) 

NIWSPAPER  "  LIES." 

My  name  is  frequently  mentioned  in  your  newspaper, 
and  as  it  is  a  sort  of  privilege  of  modern  Englishmen 
to  read  in  the  daily  newspapers  lies  respecting  those  who 
serve  them,  and  I  have  been  so  long  accustomed  to  be 
so  treated,  I  should  not  have  thought  it  necessary  to 
trouble  you  on  the  subject,  if  you  had  not  thought 
proper  to  contradict,  as  from  authority,  in  a  late  paper, 
certain  reports  which  you  had  before  published  respect- 
ing differences  between  the  Due  de  Berri  and  me. 

This  formal  contradiction  of  certain  reports  tends  to 
give  the  appearance  of  truth  to  certain  others  which 
remain  uncontradicted,  which  have  still  less  foundation 
in  fact  than  those  which  you  have  been  authorized  to 
contradict.  I  mean,  for  instance,  those  reports  which 
you  have  more  than  once  published  respecting  a  sup- 
posed intercourse  between  a  certain  Madame  Hamelin 
and  me.  I  should  be  justified  in  calling  upon  you  to 
name  the  person  who  gave  you  the  information  upon 
this  subject ;  nay,  I  believe  nobody  could  blame  me  if 
I  were  to  go  farther  ;  but  I  feel  no  resentment  upon  the 
subject,  nor  any  desire  to  injure  you.  All  I  beg  is 
that  you  will  contradict  these  reports  ;  and  your  own 
desire  to  publish  only  what  is  true  respecting  an  indi- 
vidual will,  probably,  induce  you  in  future  to  be  more 
cautious  in  selecting  the  channel  of  your  intelligence 
respecting  me,  when  I  assure  you  that  not  only  I  never 
had  any  intercourse  or  even  acquaintance  with  Madame 
Hamelin,  but  that  I  never  even  saw  her. 

Other  circumstances  respecting  me  have  been  pub- 
lished in  your  paper  which  are  equally  false  with  those 
I 


n4  WORDS   OF  WELLINGTON. 

to  which  I  have  above  referred ;  but.  I  will  not  trouble 
you  upon  them ;  nor  should  I  have  written  to  you  at  all, 
as  I  am  really  quite  indifferent  respecting  what  is  read 
of  me  in  the  newspapers,  if  you  had  not  given  an  ap- 
pearance of  truth  to  some  reports  by  the  formal  contra- 
diction which  you  have  published  of  others.  (To 

— .     Paris,  24th  Nov.  1815.) 

CONTESTS  NATURAL  IN  A  DIVIDED  COUNTRY. 

It  is  natural  that  there  should  be  violent  contests  in 
a  country  in  which  the  people  are  divided,  not  only  by 
a  difference  of  religion,  but  likewise  by  a  difference  of 
political  opinion ;  and  that  the  religion  of  every  indivi- 
dual is  in  general  the  sign  of  the  political  party  to  which 
he  belongs ;  and  at  a  moment  of  peculiar  political  in- 
terest and  of  weakness  in  the  Government  on  account  of 
the  mutiny  of  the  army,  that  the  weaker  party  should 
suffer,  and  that  much  injustice  and  violence  should  be 
committed  by  individuals  of  the  more  numerous  and 

preponderating    party.       (To  Messrs. and . 

Paris,  28th  Nov.  1815.) 

THINGS  IN  PARIS. 

.  Things  are  going  on  tolerably  here.  I  do 
not  like  the  Club  of  the  Rue  St.  Honore.  It  is  founded 
on  Jacobinism,  and  if  its  strength  should  ever  be  con- 
solidated, it  will  become  dangerous. 

The  tail  of  the  opposition  are  very  busy  here  ;  and 

the  correspondence   with  and  

active  on  both  sides  of  the  water.  The  two  latter  are 
most  violent  about  Ney,  and  we  shall  have  that  ques- 
tion agitated  in  Parliament. ,  in  a  letter 

which  I  have  seen,  accuses  me  in  pretty  plain  terms  of 
allowing  that  "  accomplished  soldier  to  be  judicially 
murdered,  because  I  could  not  beat  him  in  the  field." 


WATERLOO  AGAIN.  115 

If  the  letter  had  not  been  shown  to  me  confidentially,  I 
would  have  prosecuted  his  lordship  for  a  libel.  (To  E. 
Cooke,  Esq.  Paris,  17th  Dec.  1815.) 

TRUE  ACCOUNT  OF  WATERLOO  IMPOSSIBLE. 

The  Duke  of  Wellington  presents  his  compliments  to 
Sir  John  Sinclair,  and  is  much  obliged  to  him  for  the 
account  of  the  defence  of  Hougoumont.  The  battle  of 
Waterloo  is  undoubtedly  one  of  the  most  interesting 
events  of  modern  times,  but  the  Duke  entertains  no 
hopes  of  ever  seeing  an  account  of  all  its  details  which 
shall  be  true.  The  detail  even  of  the  defence  of  Hou- 
goumont is  not  exactly  true,  and  the  Duke  begs  leave 
to  suggest  to  Sir  John  Sinclair  that  the  publication  of 
details  of  this  kind  which  are  not  exact  cannot  be  at- 
tended with  any  utility.  (Cantbrai,  13th  April,  1816.) 

WATERLOO  AGAIN. 

I  have  received  your  letter  of  the  20th.  The  people 
of  England  may  be  entitled  to  a  detailed  and  accurate 
account  of  the  battle  of  Waterloo,  and  I  have  no  objec- 
tion to  their  having  it,  but  I  do  object  to  their  being 
misinformed  and  misled  by  those  novels  called  "  Rela- 
tions," "  Impartial  Accounts,"  &c.,  &c.r  of  that  transac- 
tion containing  the  stories  which  curious  travellers  have 
picked  up  from  peasants,  private  soldiers,  individual 
officers,  &c.,  &c.,  and  have  published  to  the  world  as  the 
truth.  Hougoumont  was  no  more  fortified  than  La 
Haye  Sainte ;  and  the  latter  was  not  lost  for  want  of 
fortifications,  but  by  one  of  those  accidents  from  which 
human  atVuirs  are  never  entirely  exempt. 

I  am  really  disgusted  with  and  ashamed  of  all  that  I 
have  seen  of  the  battle  of  Waterloo.  The  number  of 
writings  upon  it  would  lead  the  world  to  suppose  that  the 


ii6  U'ORDS  OF   WELLINGTON. 

British  army  had  never  fought  a  battle  before  ;  and  there 
is  not  one  which  contains  a  true  representation  or  even 
an  idea  of  the  transaction ;  and  this  is  because  the 
writers  have  referred  as  above  quoted,  instead  of  to  the 
official  sources  and  reports. 

It  is  not  true  that  the  British  army  was  unprepared. 
The  story  of  the  Greek  is  equally  unfounded  as  that  of 
Vandamme  having  46,000  men,  upon  which  last  point 
I  refer  to  Marshal  Ney's  Report,  which  upon  that  point 
must  be  the  best  authority.  (To  Sir  J.  Sinclair,  Bart. 
Bruxelles,  28th  April,  1816.) 

MISTAKES  CORRECTED  REGARDING  WATERLOO. 

.  - .  .  You  desire  that  I  should  point  out  to  you 
where  you  could  receive  information  on  this  event  (the 
battle  of  Waterloo),  on  the  truth  of  which  you  could 
rely.  In  answer  to  this  desire  I  can  refer  you  only  to 
my  despatches  published  in  the  London  Gazette.  Gen. 
Alava's  Report  is  the  nearest  to  the  truth  of  the  other 
official  reports  published,  but  even  that  report  contains 
some  statements  that  are  not  exactly  correct.  The 
others  that  I  have  seen  cannot  be  relied  upon.  To  some 
of  these  may  be  attributed  the  source  of  the  falsehoods 
since  circulated  through  the  medium  of  the  unofficial 
communications  with  which  the  press  has  abounded.  Of 
these  a  remarkable  instance  is  to  be  found  in  the  report 
of  a  meeting  between  Marshal  Blucher  and  me  at  La 
Belle  Alliance,  and  some  have  gone  so  far  as  to  have 
seen  the  chair  on  which  I  sat  in  that  farm  house.  It 
happened  that  the  meeting  took  place  after  ten  at  night  at 
the  village  of  Genappe ;  and  anybody  who  attempts  to 
describe  with  truth  the  operations  of  the  different  armies 
will  see  that  it  could  not  be  otherwise.  The  other  part  is 
not  so  material ;  but  in  truth  I  was  not  off  my  horse 


REMEDY  FOR  A  MOB.  nj 

till  I  returned  to  Waterloo  between  eleven  and  twelve 
at  night.  (To  W.  3fudford,  Esq.  Paris,  8th  June, 
1816.) 

THE  DUTIES  OF  A  GODFATHER. 

Sir, — I  have  received  your  letter  of  the  16th  March, 
and  am  highly  Hattered  by  your  desire  that  I  should 
stand  godfather  to  your  son. 

You  are  aware,  however,  that  a  godfather  has  certain 
duties  to  perform  which  it  is  quite  impossible  for  me  to 
undertake  in  this  instance,  and  it  is  at  all  events  ex- 
pected from  one  in  the  situation  in  which  I  am  placed, 
that  he  should  forward  the  views  of  his  godson  in  the 
world.  It  is  much  the  best  and  shortest  way  to  state 
to  you  the  fact,  that  there  are  so  many  officers  and  sol- 
diers who  have  claims  upon  me  for  services  rendered  to 
the  public  under  my  command  that  I  cannot,  with 
justice  to  them,  engage  myself  either  directly  or  vir- 
tually to  forward  the  views  of  any  others.  I  hope, 
therefore,  that  you  will  excuse  my  standing  godfather 
to  your  son,  as  it  is  really  out  of  my  power  to  undertake 
to  do  anything  for  him  at  any  time.  (London,  April  5th, 
1819.) 

REMEDY  FOR  A  MOB. 

In  the  existing  state  of  things  I  consider  200  or  300 
good  infantry  with  a  little  cavalry  sufficient  for  any  mob 
of  any  numbers.  Observe  this,  that  in  detaching  the 
troops  in  barns,  warehouses,  or  temporary  huts,  you 
must  take  great  care  to  provide  for  their  having  good 
fires  in  the  buildings  in  which  you  place  them.  They 
will  otherwise  be  wandering  about  to  the  public  houses, 
&c.,  in  the  neighbourhood,  and  they  will,  moreover, 
become  unhealthy.  (To  Major-Gen.  Sir  T.  Byng. 
London,  21  st  Oct.  1819.) 


n8  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

INSURGENTS. 

Insurgents  are  like  conquerors  ;  they  must  go  for- 
ward ;  the  moment  they  are  stopped  they  are  lost.  (To 
Lord  Sidmouth.  Strath fieldsaye,  Utk  Dec.  1819.) 

KINGS  OF  SPAIN. 

There  is  no  country  in  Europe  in  the  affairs  of  which 
foreigners  can  interfere  with  so  little  advantage  as  in 
those  of  Spain.  There  is  no  country  in  which  foreigners 
are  so  much  disliked  and  even  despised,  and  whose  man- 
ners and  habits  are  so  little  congenial  with  those  of  the 
other  nations  of  Europe.  The  pride  and  prejudice  of 
the  Spaniards,  their  virtues  as  well  as  their  faults,  are 
brought  into  action  at  every  moment  and  in  every 
transaction,  and  all  tend  to  give  them  an  exaggerated 
notion  of  their  own  powers  and  to  depreciate  foreigners. 
(Memorandum  to  Viscount  Castlereagh,  regarding  the 
propriety  of  interfering  in  Spanish  Affairs.  London, 
16th  April,  1820.) 

ROOM  TO  MOVE. 

Nothing  can  be  so  erroneous  as  to  place  any  indivi- 
dual of  great  activity  and  talents  in  a  situation  in  which 
there  is  no  scope  for  his  activity,  and  in  which  he  must 
feel  that  his  talents  are  thrown  away.  His  views  must 
always  be  directly  to  disturb  rather  than  to  preserve 
the  existing  order  of  things,  in  order  that  out  of  a  new 
arrangement  he  may  find  himself  in  a  position  better 
suited  to  him.  (Memorandum  upon  appointing  Mr. 
Canning  to  office.) 

UNNECESSARY  HELP  IN  A  CROWD. 
The  following  letter  was  addressed  by  the  Duke  to  a 


UNNECESSARY  HELP.  119 

gentleman  who  fancied  he  had  piloted  him  through  a 
crowd,  and  who  afterwards,  having  lost  his  scab,  wrote 
to  the  Duke  for  compensation  :  — 

"  The  Duke  of  Wellington  recollects  perfectly  having 
met  a  gentleman  in  the  crowd  at  the  door  of  Drury-lane 
Theatre,  on  the  6th  instant,  who,  having  recognized  the 
Duke,  mentioned  his  name,  turned  about,  and  walked 
before  him  through  the  crowd  to  the  door  of  the  house. 
This  service,  if  it  can  be  so  called,  was  purely  voluntary 
on  the  part  of  this  gentleman.  The  Duke  is  as  well 
able  as  any  other  man  to  make  his  way  through  n  crowd 
even  if  there  existed  any  disposition  to  impede  his  pro- 
gress, which  did  not  appear,  and  therefore  the  assistance 
of  this  gentleman  was  not  necessary ;  and,  moreover, 
the  Duke's  footman  attended  him. 

In  stating  this,  however,  the  Duke  does  not  deny  that 
he  considered  this  gentleman's  conduct  as  very  polite 
towards  him  ;  and  he  was  much  flattered  by  it,  and 
returned  his  thanks  for  it. 

It  appears  that  this  gentleman  is  Mr. ,  who 

states  he  lost  his  seals  in  returning  through  the  crowd 
some  time  afterwards,  after  having  walked  through 
it  to  the  door  of  the  theatre  before  Lord  Palmerston  ; 
and  he  desires  to  have  compensation  from  the  Duke  for 
this  loss. 

Upon  this  statement,  and  in  order  to  avoid  making 
this  case  a  precedent  for  others  of  the  same  kind,  the 

Duke,  however  flattered  by  Mr.  's  politeness, 

must  positively  deny  that  he  has  any  claim  upon  him  for 
compensation  for  his  loss.  The  Duke  does  not  consider 

that  Mr.  rendered  him  any  service  whatever, 

and  on  the  ground  of  service  he  must  refuse  any  com- 
pensation for  his  loss,  even  if  it  had  occurred  in  return- 


lao  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

ing  from  the  door  of  the  theatre  after  having  walked  to 
it  before  the  Duke. 

But  as  Mr. may  be  a  gentleman  in  circum- 
stances not  able  to  bear  the  expense  of  such  a  loss,  and 
as  the  Duke  certainly  considered  his  conduct  towards 
him  as  very  polite,  the  Duke  feels  no  objection  to  assist 
him  to  replace  the  loss  he  has  sustained,  at  the  same  time 

taking  the  liberty  to  recommend  Mr. ,  in  future,  to 

omit  to  render  these  acts  of  unsolicited  and  unnecessary 
politeness  unless  he  should  be  in  a  situation  to  bear  the 
probable  or  possible  consequences.  (London,  Feb.  1821.) 

SOUTHEY    AND    THE    PENINSULAR    WAR. 

.  .  -  .  In  respect  to  Mr.  Southey  I  have  heard  that 
he  was  writing  a  History  of  the  War  in  the  Peninsula, 
but  I  have  never  received  an  application  from  him, 
either  directly  or  indirectly  for  information  on  the  sub- 
ject. If  I  had  received  such  aa  application  I  would 
have  told  him,  what  I  have  told  others,  that  the  subject 
was  too  serious  to  be  trifled  with  ;  for  that  if  any  real 
authenticated  history  of  that  war,  by  an  author  worthy 
of  writing  it  were  given,  it  ought  to  convey  to  the  public 
the  real  truth,  and  ought  to  show  what  nations  really  did 
when  they  put  themselves  in  the  situation  the  Spanish 
and  Portuguese  nations  had  placed  themselves  in ;  and 
that  I  would  give  information  to  no  author  who  would 
not  write  upon  that  principle.  I  think,  however,  that 
the  period  of  the  war  is  too  near,  and  the  character  and 
reputation  of  nations  as  well  as  individuals  are  too  much 
involved  in  the  discussion  of  these  questions  for  me  to 
recommend,  or  even  encourage,  any  author  to  write  such 
a  history  as  some,  I  fear,  would  encourage  at  the  present 
moment.  This  is  my  opinion  upon  the  subject  in  general, 
and  I  should  have  conveyed  it  to  Mr.  Southey  if  he  and 
his  friends  had  applied  to  me. 


SIR  HUDSON  LOWE.  121 

.  .  I  should  wish  you  not  to  give  Mr.  Southey 
any  original  papers  from  me,  as  that  would  be  in  fact  to 
involve  me  in  his  work,  without  attaining  the  object  I 
have  in  view,  which  is,  true  history.  (Zb  Gen.  Lord 
Hill.  London,  25th  Oct.  1821.) 

SIR  HUDSON  LOWE. 

I  hope  that  Government  propose  to  do  something  upon 
this  outrage  committed  upon  Sir  Hudson  Lowe.  If  Sir 
Hudson  treated  De  las  Casas  ill  (which  I  don't  believe 
he  did),  Government  ought  to  disapprove  of  his  conduct. 
If  he  did  not  treat  him  ill,  if,  on  the  contrary,  Govern- 
ment either  approved  of  his  conduct,  or  took  no  notice 
of  it  at  the  time,  they  ought  to  protect  Sir  Hudson  ;  and, 
at  all  events,  ought  not  Jo  allow  a  blackguard  to  insult 
him  with  impunity  in  the  streets  for  his  conduct  in  the 
performance  of  his  duty. 

Officers  in  command  are  but  too  willing  to  seek  for 
popularity  ;  and  you  may  rely  upon  it  that  if  you  don't 
take  some  steps  to  mark  the  sense  of  the  Government 
upon  this  occasion,  there  is  no  thinking  man  in  either  of 
the  military  professions  who  will  not  feel  it,  and  you 
will  not  easily  find  another  who  will  brave  the  popular 
cry  to  serve  you. 

At  this  distance,  and  not  knowing  whether  De  las 
Casas  is  still  in  England  or  not,  I  cannot  say  what 
ought  to  be  done.  If  he  be  in  England,  I  should  be  for 
the  Attorney-General  prosecuting  him  ;  or  a  reward 
should  be  offered  for  his  apprehension  ;  or  something 
done  to  show  that  Government  will  not  allow  those  who 
serve  the  public  to  be  assaulted  with  impunity.  (70 
Earl  Balhurst.  Verona,  \\th  Nov.  1822.) 

.  .  .  I  answered  that  there  was  one  allay  of  which 
his  Imperial  Majesty  had  more  than  once  availed  him- 


122  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

self,  and  that  he  appeared  to  me  to  have  left  entirely  out 
of  his  calculation  upon  this  occasion.  He  answered, 
"  Which  is  it?"  I  replied,  "Time  !"  Time  would  remedy 
many  of  the  evils  complained  of  as  resulting  from  the 
Spanish  and  other  revolutions.  Time  would  strengthen 
France,  and  place  her  in  a  situation  to  be  more  able  to 
act  her  part  in  Europe ;  because,  in  fact,  it  was  to  France 
that  we  were  all  to  look  for  the  danger  by  which  we  were 
likely  to  be  affected,  in  consequence  of  the  existence  of  the 
revolutionary  principle.  I  then  observed  that  I  believed 
I  considered  things  in  France  in  a  more  favourable  light 
than  his  Imperial  Majesty,  or  than  any  of  the  ministers 
here ;  but  that  I  could  not  see  France  go  to  war  at  pre- 
sent and  upon  a  revolutionary  principle,  without  feeling 
that  the  world  was  in  danger,  and  that  I  would  prefer 
to  trust  to  time  for  a  remedy  to  the  mischief  to  be  ap- 
prehended from  these  revolutions  rather  than  to  incur 
such  a  risk.  (Memorandum  on  Conversation  with  Em- 
peror of  Russia.  Verona,  27th  Nov.  1822.) 

SITUATION  OF  THE  KING. 

If  the  situation  of  the  King  is  not  what  it  ought  to  be, 
if  he  has  not  the  power  to  protect  himself  and  those  em- 
ployed under  him  in  the  performance  of  their  duty  in 
the  service  of  the  public,  and  if  the  King  has  not  reason 
to  be  satisfied  that  the  power  allotted  to  him  by  the  law 
is  sufficient,  the  country  will  never  be  in  a  state  of  tran- 
quillity, be  the  system  of  government  what  it  may. 

There  will  be  perpetual  successive  insurrections  in  one 
part  of  the  country  or  the  other,  the  King  and  his 
Government  will  be  a  never-ceasing  object  of  jealousy 
and  mistrust,  and  sooner  or  later  the  catastrophe  will 
happen  which  all  good  men  deprecate.  But  not  only  is 


PLACE  AND   OFFICE.  123 

internal  tranquillity  impossible  as  long  as  this  system 
lasts,  but  it  renders  foreign  war  and  invasion  certain, 
(Memorandum  on  Spain.  Jan.  1823.) 

A  CABINET  MINISTER. 

To  become  a  member  of  the  Government  is  an 
honourable  object  of  ambition,  and  I  am  not  astonished 
that  a  person  of  your  talents  and  station  should  be  de- 
sirous of  it.  But  I  cannot  but  think  that  I  should  not 
serve  your  cause  nor  promote  your  object  by  laying 
before  Lord  Liverpool  your  letter  to  which  this  is  an 
answer.  I  know  that  it  has  been  felt  by  the  King  and 
by  others  that  the  Cabinet  is  too  numerous,  and  that  it 
is  objectionable  to  admit  to  it  any  person  not  holding  a 
regular  Cabinet  office.  It  is  not  necessary  to  discuss  the 
difference  between  your  situation  and  that  of  Lord 
Sidmouth  ;  but  I  am  certain  that  if  Lord  Sidmouth  was 
to  relinquish  his  seat  in  the  Cabinet,  you  would  experi- 
ence insurmountable  difficulties  in  being  called  to  fill 
it.  In  regard  to  the  other  situations  to  which  you  refer, 
I  don't  believe  there  is  the  most  remote  chance  of  any 
of  them  becoming  vacant;  and  of  this  I  am  very  certain, 
that  your  desire  to  belong  to  the  Cabinet  being  known, 
which  it  is  by  what  passed  in  1821,  and  again  last  year, 
it  would  be  much  more  dignified  in  you  to  wait  for  an 
offer  than  to  bring  forward  your  claim  and  your  wishes 
upon  the  occasion  of  every  move  in  the  inferior  offices 
of  the  Government. 

I  hope  you  will  excuse  the  freedom  with  which  I 
have  written  to  you  upon  this  subject,  and  will  attribute 
it  to  its  real  motive,  my  desire  to  show  you  the  true  posi- 
tion of  the  Government  in  respect  to  the  points  discussed 
by  you,  and  my  sentiments  regarding  the  relation  in 


iz4  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

which  you  stand  towards  it.   (  To  the  Duke  of  Newcastle, 
who  wished  to  enter  the  Cabinet  without  office  in  1823.) 

MISCHIEF  OF  IRISH  DISCUSSIONS. 

.  .  .  The  mischief  of  all  these  discussions  and 
questions  in  Ireland  is  that  everything  is  an  affair  of 
party;  that  inferior  men  in  questions  of  this  description, 
and  in  the  heat  of  party  dispute,  become  of  far  greater 
importance  than  that  to  which  their  talents  and  situation 
entitle  them;  that  they  get  possession  of  these  questions, 
and  force  from  those  who  are  their  superiors,  as  well  in 
station  as  in  talents  and  abilities,  the  decision  upon  them. 
The  sufferers  in  this  contest  are  the  unfortunate  people 
and  the  nation  at  large,  and  by  no  means  those  put  forward 
in  it,  much  less  those  who  really  conduct  and  decide  it. 

I  am  convinced  that  there  is  no  more  moderate  man 
than  yourself,  and  when  I  entreat  you  to  set  the  example 
of  moderation,  to  calm  the  zeal  and  irritation  of  those  who 
surround  you,  and  to  endeavour  to  produce  all  the  good 
you  can  in  our  unfortunate  country,  I  am  convinced  that 
I  am  urging  that  to  which  your  own  inclination  Avould 
lead  you.  But  it  cannot  be  too  often  repeated,  and  I  hope 
you  will  excuse  me  if  I  have  unnecessarily  repeated  this 
recommendation  upon  the  present  occasion.  (7b  the 
Rev.  D.  Curtis.  Woodford,  12th  Sept.  1824.) 

MIS-STATEMENT  OF  THE  DUKE'S  HEALTH. 
.  .  .  The  newspapers  have,  as  usual,  misrepresented 
not  only  my  case,  of  which  naturally  enough  the  editors 
could  have  known  nothing,  but  the  state  of  my  health. 
The  truth  is,  that  I  met  with  an  accident  in  the  treat- 
ment of  a  derangement  in  the  ear  about  two  years  ago, 
by  which  the  nerves  of  my  head  were  affected  and  in- 
jured. My  stomach  became  consequently  deranged,  and 
although  but  little  remains  of  the  affection  of  the  head, 


S  LETTER-WRIT  IS  G.          125 

iind  all  the  unpleasant  symptoms  have  disappeared,  my 
health  is  not  yet  entirely  re-established.  I  don't  feel 
any  inconvenience  from  the  remains  of  this  accident,  ex- 
cepting that  I  don't  sleep  at  night  quite  so  well  as  I  could 
wish,  and  I  must  add  that  the  act  of  awaking  is  always 
attended  by  some  feeling  like  a  quickened  circulation 
in  the  head,  and  a  corresponding  feeling  in  the  stomach. 
There  is  nothing  like  spasm  in  the  case,  nor  ever  has 
been  ;  and  I  really  believe  that  time  alone  and  attention 
to  my  diet  will  do  me  any  good. 

I  have  troubled  you  with  this  explanation  in  conse- 
quence of  the  interest  which  you  are  pleased  to  express 
about  me  ;  but  I  am  so  tired  of  being  the  subject  of  the 
comments  of  the  newspapers  of  the  day,  that  I  request 
you  will  keep  this  communication  to  yourself.  (To  T. 
'Mnloch,  Esq.  Strathfeldsaye,  1st  Oct.  18:24.) 

INTRIGUING  OFFICERS. 

.  .  .  I  must  say  that  I  cannot  approve  of  officers 
running  about  to  look  for  influence  to  obtain  their  regi- 
mental objects,  instead  of  confiding  in  their  own  claims 
for  employment,  founded  on  their  qualifications.  I  never 
entertain  a  very  high  opinion  of  these  qualifications 
when  I  have  such  a  case  before  me,  as  there  is  not  one 
of  them  who  does  not  know  that  I  am  well  acquainted 
with  his  character  and  acquirements,  and  that  if  he 
deserves  it  he  is  quite  certain  of  being  employed  as 
opportunities  occur.  (To  ,SVr  JF.  Kmghton.  Woodford, 
Nov.  26M,  1824.) 

ANOHTMOTJS  LETTER-WRITING. 

.  .  .  To  write,  or  cause  to  be  written,  an  anonymous 
letter,  is  understood  by  gentlemen  to  be  the  dirtiest 
trick  of  which  a  person  in  that  class  can  be  guilty.  (To 
fke  Rev  Dr  Curtis.  Sudbourn,  2lst  Dec.  1824.) 


ia6  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON, 

INVASION. 

.  .  I  confess  I  am  one  of  those  who  do  not  much 
apprehend  invasion.  I  think  steam  navigation  has  in 
some  degree  altered  that  question  to  our  disadvantage, 
particularly  at  the  commencement  of  a  contest,  and  in 
relation  to  a  coup-de-main  upon  one  or  other  of  our 
naval  arsenals.  In  this  view  of  the  subject,  I  have  the 
officers  of  engineers  now  employed  in  the  consideration 
of  a  plan  for  the  security  of  Sheerness,  which  I  will 
afterwards  apply  to  Portsmouth  and  Plymouth,  if  I 
should  find  the  Government  and  Parliament  disposed  to 
adopt  it.  But  I  confess  that  I  think  a  solid  invasion  of 
the  country,  with  a  view  even  to  the  plunder  of  the 
capital  or  of  Woolwich,  or  even  to  take  possession  of,  or 
to  do  more  than  bombard,  one  of  our  naval  arsenals,  is  out 
of  the  question.  (To  Sir  Herbert  Taylor.  27th  Dec.  1824.) 

PROSECUTION  OF  MR.  O'CONNELL. 

.  .  .  I  confess  that  I  see  more  than  you  do.  Mr. 
O'Connell  is  charged  with  sedition  by  exciting  the 
people  of  Ireland  to  rebel,  after  the  example  of  those  of 
Colombia,  and  holding  out  hopes  of  their  finding  a  Bolivar. 
The  King  says  you  must  prosecute  this  man  in  earnest. 
If  you  hold  that  the  people  of  Colombia  have  been  guilty 
of  no  crime,  and  that  Bolivar  is  a  hero  and  no  rebel, 
then  you  ought  not  to  prosecute  O'Connell.  If  the  con- 
trary, then  you  ought  not  to  make  any  arrangement 
with  that  country  which  shall  involve  his  Majesty  in  a 
recognition  of  that  state  beyond  what  is  necessary. 

The  whole  question  is  then  open  again.  The  refer- 
ence to  the  example  of  Cromwell  or  Washington  will 
not  hold  in  this  view  of  the  case ;  Cromwell  and  Wash- 
ington were  equally  with  Bolivar  rebels,  and  the  refer- 


PROSECUTION  OF  MR.   O'CONNELL.       127 

ence  to  them  as  examples  by  O'Connell  would  have 
been  equally  seditious.  But  their  cases  are  now  matters 
of  history,  and  the  other  part  is  wanting  to  the  case, 
that  we  are  going  to  bring  the  rebel  Bolivar  and  the 
rebel  state  of  Colombia  into  diplomatic  relation  with  his 
Majesty,  at  the  very  moment  in  which  we  prosecute  Mr. 
O'Connell  for  holding  them  up  as  examples  to  the  people 
of  Ireland. 

This  is  what  the  King  calls  two  half  measures ;  and  I 
say  we  cannot  get  out  of  the  difficulty  excepting  by  an 
explanation  of  what  we  mean  very  nicely  worded,  which 
in  my  opinion  is  not  right.  (To  the  Right  Hon.  Robert 
Peel.  Apethorpe,  30th  Dec.  1824.) 

ON    THE    SAME    SUBJECT. 

You  are  quite  mistaken  if  you  suppose  that  I  think 
O'Connell  ought  not  to  be  prosecuted.  I  think  he  ought 
and  must  be  prosecuted.  But  I  confess  that  I  agree 
with  the  King  that  the  moment  to  recognize  the  rebel 
Bolivar  is  not  luckily  chosen. 

I  have  always  been  of  the  same  opinion  on  this  sub- 
ject. Bolivar  is  now  engaged  in  a  rebellion  in  Peru  ; 
and  at  the  moment  at  which  we  are  going  to  prosecute 
Mr.  O'Connell  for  exciting  the  people  of  Ireland  to 
rebel,  we  have  authorized  our  agent  in  Colombia  to  de- 
cide whether  he  will  or  not  recognize  Bolivar  in  the 
name  of  the  King ;  and  we  are  in  this  hurry  not  from 
any  cause  appertaining  to  the  case  itself,  but  because  we 
did  not  choose  to  take  the  measure  which  we  ought  to 
have  taken — to  draw  from  France  at  first  the  explanation 
which  the  King  of  France  has  since  given  in  his  speech 
to  the  Legislature,  of  the  nature  of  the  French  occupa- 
tion of  Spain.  (  To  the  Right  Hon.  Robert  Peel.  Apethorpe, 
2nd  Jan.  1825.) 


ia8  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

BEGGING  FAVOURS. 

When  I  was  in  India  and  with  the  army,  nobody  ever 
thought  of  applying  for  anything,  knowing  that  I  would 
do  justice  to  all  as  fast  as  I  could.  But  these  confounded 
corps  of  artillery  and  engineers  are  so  accustomed  to 
look  to  private  patronage  and  applications,  that  I  am 
teased  out  of  my  life  by  them  ;  and  there  is  not  a  woman, 
or  a  member  of  Parliament,  or  even  an  acquaintance, 
who  does  not  come  with  an  application  in  favour  of  some 
one  or  other  of  them.  (To  Col.  Malcolm.  London, 
Sept.  2lst,  1825.) 

MEMORANDUM  ON  THE  ROMAN  CATHOLICS  IN 
IRELAND  (1825). 

It  must  be  admitted  that  if  any  arrangement  can  be 
made  upon  this  question,  the  fittest  time  for  it  is  one  of 
external  peace  and  of  internal  tranquillity,  and  when 
the  Government  is  strong  and  universally  respected.  The 
concessions  hitherto  made  to  the  Roman  Catholics  have 
been  made  in  times  of  war  and  of  difficulty ;  and  it  is 
not  unreasonable  to  suppose  that  they  must  have  pro- 
duced an  impression  upon  their  minds  that  they  were 
concessions  to  the  apprehensions  of  the  Government  of 
their  enmity  and  strength.  As  the  arrangement  to  be 
made,  if  made  at  all,  must  include  every  point  which 
can  be  a  subject  of  difference  between  the  two  religions, 
it  is  most  desirable  that  the  impression  should  not  exist 
that  the  arrangement,  whatever  it  may  be,  was  extorted 
from  our  fears. 

.  .  .  The  evil  in  Ireland  is  of  long  standing,  and 
consists  entirely  in  the  state  of  society.  There  are  two 
parties  in  that  country,  the  Protestants  and  the  Roman 
Catholics.  In  the  Protestant  party  are  the  proprietors, 


^ 


IRISH    THEOCRACY.  129 

the  clergy  of  the  Church  of  England,  and  the  mass  of 
tlie  Protestant  population :  in  the  Roman  Catholic  are 
the  Roman  Catholic  bishops,  clergy  and  gentry,  and  the 
populace,  now  called  six  millions  of  people. 

.  .  .  It  may  be  stated  as  a  general  truth  that 
there  are  no  Protestant  residents  in  Ireland  who  do  not 
in  reality  apprehend  the  result  of  another  contest  with 
the  Roman  Catholics  for  the  government  of  the  country 
as  long  as  the  connection  with  England  subsists,  and 
England  is  in  her  existing  state  of  triumphant  strength, 
but  a  sudden  and  general  rising  of  the  populace  of  that 
religion,  in  which  many  would  fall  a  sacrifice. 

There  are  none  who  reside  here  who  have  not  con- 
stantly in  their  minds  the  recollection  of  the  histories  of 
former  rebellions;  and  of  those  more  recent  of  1798  and 
1803  ;  and  before  their  eyes  fresh  instances  of  the  facility 
and  secrecy  with  which  the  Roman  Catholic  population, 
even  the  servants  in  their  own  houses,  combine  for  the 
purposes  of  mischief  and  outrage. 

On  the  other  hand,  there  are  some  Roman  Catholic 
proprietors,  and  of  the  higher  orders  of  the  clergy,  and 
even  some  of  the  priests,  who  do  occasionally  exert  them- 
selves to  promote  peace  and  good  order.  But  these  are 
exceptions  to  their  general  line  of  conduct.  The  Roman 
Catholic  clergy,  nobility,  lawyers,  and  gentlemen  having 
property  form  a  sort  of  theocracy  in  Ireland,  which  in 
all  essential  points  governs  the  populace,  I  believe,  even 
to  the  extent  of  being  able  to  prevent  disturbance  and  ^ 
outrage ;  and  by  the  measures  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
Association,  and  particularly  the  rent,  this  theocracy  has 
acquired  a  knowledge  of  the  means  of  organizing  this 
mass  which  it  had  never  before  possessed. 

This  theocracy  is  in  strict  communion  with  the  Church 
of  Rome;  and  that  church  continues  established  in 

K 


1 30  WORDS    OF    WELLINGTON. 

Ireland  in  all  its  parts,  as  it  was  three  hundred  years 
ago,  with  the  same  hierarchy,  the  same  discipline,  but  ten 
tiroes  the  authority  and  influence  possessed  by  any 
national  church  whatever ;  although  without  the  pro- 
perty belonging  to  the  church. 

.  .  .  This,  in  my  opinion,  is  the  great  distinction 
between  this  and  other  religious  parties  in  this  or  any 
other  state.  The  Dissenters  of  different  descriptions  in 
England,  however  troublesome  and  factious,  and  the 
Greeks  in  Hungary,  are  domestic  parties,  and  have  no 
connection  with  foreign  powers ;  nor  have  the  Greeks 
even  in  the  Turkish  dominions,  excepting  by  virtue  of 
treaties  between  the  Porte  and  the  Emperor  of  Russia. 
But  this  Roman  Catholic  party  in  Ireland  is  and  acts 
in  every  respect  as,  and  its  existence  has  all  the 
effects  upon  the  prosperity  and  greatness  of  the  empire, 
of  a  party  connected  with  and  protected  by  a  foreign 
power. 

Then,  this  formidable  party  not  only  has  no  connection 
whatever  with  the  State,  but,  considering  all  the  circum- 
stances of  preceding  wars  and  confiscations,  all  upon 
Roman  Catholic  principles,  and  the  nature  of  the  settle- 
ment of  the  Government  and  of  the  property  of  the 
church  and  of  individuals  in  the  hands  of  the  Protestants 
at  the  Revolution,  it  is  obvious  that  it  must  be  hostile  to 
the  Church  of  England,  and  to  the  connection  between 
the  two  countries ;  and  therefore  to  the  Government. 
It  is  hostile  to  the  Protestants,  as  the  proprietors  of  the 
soil  and  the  ancient  instruments  of  the  conquest,  and 
of  the  suppression  of  the  different  rebellions  which  have 
taken  place,  and  the  supporters  of  the  English  con- 
nection and  government. 

The  difficulty  in  this  most  difficult  question  is  much 
aggravated  by  the  state  of  enmity  towards  the  Govern- 


ROMANIST   HATRED    OF    GOVERNMENT,     131 

ment  in  which  the  Roman  Catholics  in  Ireland  stand, 
and  by  their  determination  to  prevent  the  Crown  and 
Church  Establishment  from  acquiring  an  additional  se- 
curity under  the  Settlement.  Any  other  sovereign,  ex- 
cepting his  Majesty  and  his  Majesty  as  King  of  Hanover, 
would  upon  approaching  the  Pope  upon  such  a  question 
as  this  have  the  full  support  of  his  lloman  Catholic  sub- 
jects in  the  discussion  ;  each  class  of  whom  would  be  as 
anxious  as  the  King's  Protestant  ministers  that  the  ques- 
tion should  be  settled  in  a  manner  honourable  to  the 
Crown,  and  beneficial  to  the  public  at  large.  But  as 
referable  to  Ireland  there  are  three  parties  to  these 
questions  :  the  King,  the  Pope,  and  the  Roman  Catholics 
in  Ireland.  Of  these  the  last  named  are  incomparably 
the  most  difficult  to  treat  with.  They  will  not  hear  of 
the  interference  of  the  Crown  to  put  an  end  to  Papal 
encroachment,  or  its  consequences ;  and  it  is  obvious 
that  their  object  is  to  prevent  the  exercise  of  any  in- 
spection or  control  by  the  Crown,  in  order  that  the 
country  may  continue  under  the  government  of  the 
lloman  Catholic  theocracy.  As  long  as  the  Roman 
Catholic  religion  exists  in  this  or  any  other  country  out 
of  the  control  of  the  Crown,  it  remains  a  system  of 
secrecy  and  concealment,  and  therefore  of  danger.  It 
has  not  been  suffered  thus  to  exist  in  any  country  in 
Europe,  whether  governed  by  a  Roman  Catholic  or  by  a 
Protestant  sovereign,  and  we  see  from  antecedent  trans- 
actions in  Ireland,  from  the  existing  state  of  society  in 
that  country,  and  from  what  has  come  out  in  evidence 
before  the  committee  of  the  Lords,  that  of  all  the  coun- 
tries in  Europe  Ireland  is  the  one  in  which  such  a  sys- 
tem should  not  be  suffered  to  exist. 

Whatever  may  be  the  opposition  on  the  part  of  the 
Irish  Roman  Catholics,  our  view  must  be  then  to  bring 


1 32  WORDS    OF    WELLIXGTOX. 

the  Roman  Catholic  religion  in  that  country  under  the 
control  of  the  Crown ;  and  in  proportion  as  we  shall  be 
successful  in  attaining  this  object  will  the  arrangement 
be  good,  and  the  security  of  the  Church  of  England 
in  Ireland  be  confirmed.  Our  success  in  this  object  is 
not  less  necessary  for  the  dignity  of  the  Crown  than  it 
is  for  the  security  of  the  Church,  and  of  the  Constitu- 
tion and  Government  of  the  country. 

It  is  obvious,  however,  that  these  questions  cannot  be 
so  settled  without  an  alteration  of  and  a  departure  from 
the  ancient  policy  of  the  country,  from  the  period  of 
the  Reformation  down  to  the  present  time.  It  must  be 
observed  that  this  policy  was  adopted  in  this  country  at 
the  period  at  which  the  political  divisions  of  Europe  and 
the  religious  divisions  were  the  same,  and  these  distinc- 
tions existed  till  the  French  Revolution  and  its  conse- 
quences annihilated  church  property  in  nearly  every 
part  of  Europe.  The  political  distinctions  attending 
difference  of  religion  have  since  become  but  feeble.  We 
see  the  Protestant  Sovereigns  of  Europe  possessing  do- 
minions in  which  the  Roman  Catholic  religion  is  pre- 
dominant ;  and  each  of  them  making  arrangements  with 
the  Pope  of  the  same  descriptions  as  the  Concordats  made 
by  the  Roman  Catholic  sovereigns,  to  define  and  regu- 
late the  spiritual  authority  of  the  Pope  within  their 
several  dominions,  and  settling  what  the  Roman  Catholic 
Church  shall  be. 

The  consequence  of  these  arrangements  in  every  case 
is,  that  the  sovereign  authority  becomes  secure  by  the 
knowledge  of  and  control  over  the  actions  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  Church  ;  and  the  municipal  law  of  the  country 
can  be  put  in  operation  in  relation  to  the  Roman  Catholic 
Church  and  its  establishments,  equally  as  upon  any  other 
establishment  in  the  country. 


SOLITARY  CONFINEMENT.  133 

SOLITARY  CONFINEMENT  FOR  SOLDIERS. 

Real  solitary  confinement,  that  is  a  total  seclusion 
from  all  social  intercourse  with  the  whole  of  the  human 
race  for  a  given  protracted  space  of  time,  the  prisoner 
seeing  nobody  excepting  the  person  charged  to  bring 
into  the  cell  the  provisions  for  the  day,  and  to  carry 
away  the  dirt  of  the  cell,  and  during  the  performance  of 
this  service  neither  party  to  be  allowed  to  utter  a  word, 
is  a  punishment  calculated  to  deter  men  from  the  com- 
misMon  of  crimes;  and  if  such  punishment  is  continued 
for  any  length  of  time,  it  does  make  an  impression  never 
to  be  effaced  on  the  mind  of  the  man  on  whom  it  is 
really  inflicted.  But  it  is  obvious  that  this  punishment 
can  in  reality  be  inflicted  only  in  places  constructed  for 
the  purpose,  and  under  the  charge  of  persons  specially 
instructed  as  to  the  mode  of  conducting  themselves  with 
such  prisoners,  and  who  will  carry  into  execution  strictly 
such  instructions. 

These  prisoners  must  have  one  or  more  sentries  over 
them.  Is  it  not  certain  that  these  sentries  will  talk  to 
their  prisoners  in  solitary  confinement  ?  If  anybody 
can  communicate  with  the  prisoner  there  is  an  end  to 
his  solitary  confinement. 

.  .  .  1  have  seen  confinement  of  the  nature  con- 
templated by  Colonel  Woodford  practised  in  the  service 
at  Fort  William,  in  Bengal. 

For  trifling  offences,  not  necessary  to  be  brought  under 
the  consideration  of  a  court-martial,  such  as  drunken- 
ness, &c.,  soldiers  are  there  confined  in  what  is  called 
the  conjee-house,  by  the  commanding  ofiieer,  for  a  period 
not  exceeding  forty-eight  hours.  They  are  there  fed 
upon  conjee  alone,  that  is  the  water  in  which  rice  has 
been  boiled ;  they  are  locked  up  in  what  are  intended 


i34  WORDS    OF    WELLINGTON. 

to  be  solitary  cells,  that  is  to  say  one  man  in  each  place 
of  confinement.  But  they  are  under  the  charge  of  sen- 
tries, and  no  man  who  ever  knew  what  British  soldiers 
are,  ever  believed  that  they  did  not  talk  to  whom  they 
pleased. 

.  .  .  This  description  of  punishment  was  in  hot 
climates  not  otherwise  than  beneficial  to  the  health  of 
the  men  on  whom  it  was  inflicted,  but  I  never  found  or 
heard  that  it  had  any  effect  upon  their  conduct.  (Ord- 
iiance  Office,  8th  Sept.  1825.) 

SLAVE  TRAFFIC.     (1826.) 

The  traffic  in  slaves  on  the  coast  of  Africa  has  doubled, 
while  the  market  for  their  sale  has  diminished  almost  to 
nothing ;  and  it  must  be  admitted  that  the  measures 
adopted  by  his  Majesty's  Government  to  put  an  end  to 
the  traffic,  however  expensive  in  lives  as  well  as  money, 
have  totally  failed  in  producing  any  effect. 

BRITISH  CAVALRY.     (1826.) 

I  considered  our  cavalry  so  inferior  to  that  of  the 
French,  from  want  of  order,  although  I  consider  one 
squadron  a  match  for  two  French  squadrons,  that  I 
should  not  have  liked  to  see  four  British  squadrons 
opposed  to  four  French  ;  and  as  the  numbers  increased, 
and  order,  of  course,  became  more  necessary,  I  was 
more  unwilling  to  risk  our  cavalry  without  having  a 
greater  superiority  of  numbers. 

THE  FAILURE  OF  THE  POTATO  CROP.     (1826.) 

The  total  failure  of  the  potato  crop,  if  it  occurs,  must 
deprive  the  country  labourers,  who  are  paid  by  gardens 


FAILURE   OF  POTATO   CROP.  135 

or  by  con-acres,  not  only  of  the  food  on  which  they 
subsist,  but  of  the  wages  of  their  labour.  .  .  .  This 
is  the  way,  then,  in  which  we  shall  stand  in  Ireland,  if 
the  calamity  of  the  total  failure  of  the  potato  crop 
should  foil  upon  us,  in  addition  to  that  of  the  failure  of 
the  oat  crop.  (1.)  We  must  fill  the  markets  with  oats, 
barley,  or  some  other  food,  for  the  consumption  of  that 
part  of  the  population  who  have  hitherto  been  fed  from 
the  markets.  (2.)  We  must  supply  food  for  those  who 
have  hitherto  been  fed  from  their  own  gardens,  &c.  If 
I  am  not  mistaken  this  is  the  whole  of  the  country  popu- 
lation of  the  three  southern  provinces.  (3.)  We  must 
contrive  the  means  of  distributing  this  food. 


SPEECHES   IX   PARLIAMENT. 

iOAV  I  have  been  informed  that  in  several 
Roman  Catholic  schools  children  have  been 
taught  to  read,  not  out  of  the  Bible,  but  out 
of  "  Paine's  Rights  of  Man,"  and  in  books 
professing  to  give  an  account  of  the  sufferings  and  ill- 
treatment  which  the  Roman  Catholics  of  Ireland  have 
experienced  at  the  hands  of  the  Protestants.  Such  an 
education  as  this,  it  is  evident,  must  necessarily  breed 
them  up  in  a  fixed  and  rooted  hatred  to  Protestants. 
(April,  1828.) 

ON  THE  CORPORATION  AND  TEST  ACTS. 

I  am  not  one  of  those  who  consider  that  the  best  means 
of  preserving  the  Constitution  of  this  country  is  by 
rigidly  adhering  to  measures  which  were  called  for  by 
particular  circumstances,  because  those  measures  have 
been  in  existence  for  two  hundred  years,  for  the  lapse 
of  time  might  render  it  proper  to  modify  if  not  to 
remove  them  altogether.  (April  21st,  1828.) 

THE  CHARACTER  OF  THE  ARMY. 

I  confess  I  have  great  objections  to  allow  any  one 
who  has  been  guilty  of  a  crime  to  serve  in  the  army  as  a 


ROM  AX    CATHOLIC   DISABILITIES.       137 

soldier.  I  do  not  mean  to  say  that  there  are  not  many 
persons  in  the  army  who  have  been  guilty  of  crimes, 
but  I  do  not  wish'  to  have  them  as  having  committed 
crimes.  What  1  object  to  is  this,  that  persons  should 
be  sent  to  serve  in  the  army  or  navy  as  a  punishment 
for  committing  a  crime.  Such  a  mode  of  enlistment  is 
not  at  all  calculated,  in  my  opinion,  to  ensure  the  good 
conduct  of  the  army  or  navy,  and  I  shall,  therefore,  cer- 
tainly object  to  the  clause.  (May  16th,  1828.) 

ROMAN  CATHOLIC  DISABILITIES. 

My  Lords,  I  have  never  objected  to  the  Roman  Ca- 
tholics on  the  ground  that  they  believe  in  transubstan- 
tiation,  or  in  purgatory,  or  in  any  other  of  those  peculiar 
doctrines  by  which  they  are  distinguished, — doctrines 
with  which  a  most  reverend  prelate  (Canterbury)  con- 
ceived it  to  be  his  duty  to  find  fault.  But  I  have 
objected  to  the  admission  to  offices  of  trust  and  power 
of  persons  believing  in  those  doctrines,  because  the 
conduct  and  opinions  of  those  persons  was  considered, 
in  other  respects,  to  be  inconsistent  with  the  principles 
of  the  Constitution  and  the  safety  of  the  State.  .  .  . 
The  question,  then,  is  one  merely  of  expediency  ;  and  I 
ground  my  opposition  not  on  any  doctrinal  points,  but 
on  the  church  government  of  the  Roman  Catholic  reli- 
gion. ...  I  must  observe  that  nobody  can  have 
looked  into  the  transactions  in  Ireland  for  the  last 
hundred  and  fifty  years  without  at  the  same  time  seeing 
that  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  has  acted  on  the  prin- 
ciple of  a  combination ;  that  this  combination  has  been 
the  instrument  by  which  all  the  evil  that  has  been  done 
has  been  effected ;  and  that  to  this  cause  the  existing 
state  of  things  in  Ireland  is  to  be  attributed.  (June 
Wth,  1828.) 


138  WORDS    OF    WELLINGTON. 

BUCKINGHAM  PALACE. 

.  .  .  I  must  say,  notwithstanding  the  expense  which 
has  been  incurred  in  building  the  palace  (Buckingham), 
no  sovereign  in  Europe,  I  may  even  add,  perhaps  no 
private  gentleman,  is  so  ill  lodged  as  the  king  of  this 
country.  (  July  16th,  1828.) 

METROPOLIS  POLICE  BILL. 

.  .  .  There  is  a  point  to  which  I  wish  to  call 
your  Lordships'  attention,  and  that  is  the  desire  which 
so  generally  prevails  throughout  the  country  to  diminish 
the  number  of  capital  punishments ;  and,  indeed,  to 
soften  the  severity  of  punishment  in  all  cases.  Now  it 
seems  to  me,  my  Lords,  that  the  best  way  of  avoiding 
the  infliction  of  punishment  is  to  prevent  the  growth  of 
crime ;  and  we  shall,  I  think,  do  much  to  prevent  the 
growth  of  crime,  and  the  consequent  necessity  of  punish- 
ment, by  placing  an  efficient  police  in  the  hands  of  the 
magistrate.  (June  25th,  1829.) 

SALE  OF  BEER  BILL. 

As  to  excluding  constables  from  keeping  beer-houses, 
I  beg  to  remind  the  noble  duke  that  the  office  of  con- 
stable is  a  burden,  and  that  a  benefit  ought  not  to  be 
refused  to  a  man  because  a  public  burden  has  ah  eady 
been  imposed  on  him.  As  to  the  clause  for  adding  hard 
labour  to  imprisonment,  I  must  inform  the  noble  duke 
(Richmond)  that  the  man  is  only  to  be  imprisoned  for 
nonpayment  of  penalties  ;  that  these  penalties  are  a 
debt,  and  that  it  is  not  usual  in  legislation  to  inflict 
hard  labour  on  a  debtor.  (July  l'2th,  1830.) 


THE    GAME   LAWS.  139 

IRISH  POVERTY. 

No  man  either  in  Ireland  or  in  England  can  be  more 
painfully  aware  than  I  am  of  the  extreme  poverty  of 
the  Irish,  and  of  the  great  inconvenience  and  danger  to 
the  empire  resulting  from  the  deplorable  state  of  the 
lower  orders.  No  person  can  be  more  sensible  of  all 
this  than  he  who  has  now  the  honour  of  addressing  the 
House ;  but  I  must  beg  the  noble  Lord  to  reflect  that 
it  is  not  by  coming  to  this  House  and  by  talking  to 
your  Lordships  of  the  poverty  of  the  people  that  the 
poor  can  be  relieved,  or  that  the  evils  resulting  from 
that  poverty  can  be  remedied.  If  you  wish  to  tran- 
quillize Ireland  the  way  is  to  persuade  those  who  have 
money  to  buy  estates  and  settle  in  that  country,  and  to 
employ  their  capital  in  its  improvement.  By  trans- 
ferring capital  to  Ireland  and  exciting  industry  there, 
we  shall  soon  change  the  state  of  the  case.  If  persons 
of  estate  and  property  in  that  country  would  reside  in 
it,  and  spend  their  incomes  there,  they  would  do  more 
to  tranquillize  it  than  all  the  measures  which  his  Ma- 
jesty's Ministers  could  adopt.  {Nov.  2,  1830.) 

THE  GAME  LAWS. 

.  .  .  The  killing  of  game  forms  the  chief  amusement 
of  country  gentlemen.  It  causes  a  large  expenditure  of 
money  in  the  country,  and  affords  employment  to  thou- 
sands of  people.  This  expenditure  of  money  and  em- 
ployment of  people  would  cease  were  gentlemen  de- 
prived of  the  exclusive  right  of  killing  game,  which 
they  have  possessed  in  this  country  for  nearly  five 
hundred  years.  It  is  worthy  of  observation  that  in 
every  country  of  Europe,  except  France,  the  gentry 
possess  the  exclusive  right  of  pursuing  game.  (Sept. 
19M,  1831.) 


140  WORDS    OF    WELLINGTON. 

PRIXCE  TALLETRAND. 

.  .  .  I  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  that  in  every 
transaction  in  which  I  have  been  engaged  with  Prince 
Talleyrand,  I  have  no  hesitation,  I  say,  in  declaring  that 
in  all  those  transactions,  from  the  first  to  the  last  of  them, 
no  man  could  have  conducted  himself  with  more  firm- 
ness and  ability  with  regard  to  his  own  country,  or  with 
more  uprightness  and  honour  in  all  his  communications 
with  the  Ministers  of  other  countries  than  Prince  Tal- 
leyrand. We  have  heard  a  good  deal  of  Prince  Talley- 
rand from  many  quarters,  but  I  feel  myself  bound  to 
declare  it  to  be  my  sincere  and  conscientious  belief  that 
no  man's  public  and  private  character  has  been  so  much 
belied  as  both  the  public  and  the  private  character  of 
that  illustrious  individual  has  been.  I  have  thought 
it  necessary,  in  common  justice,  to  say  this  much  of 
an  individual  respecting  whose  conduct  and  character 
I  have  had  no  slight  means  of  forming  a  judgment. 
(Sept.  29M,  1831.) 

FREE  TRADE. 

There  is  no  such  thing,  there  can  be  no  such  thing,  as 
free  trade  in  this  country.  We  proceed  on  the  system 
of  protecting  our  manufactures  and  our  produce,  the 
produce  of  our  labour  and  our  soil,  of  protecting  them 
for  importation  and  protecting  them  for  home  consump- 
tion ;  and  on  this  universal  system  of  protection  it  is 
absurd  to  talk  of  free  trade.  I  hope  this  system  will 
continue,  and  I  shall  be  sorry  to  see  the  House  depart 
from  it.  I  concur  with  what  the  noble  Lord  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  Board  of  Trade  has  said  as  to  the  inter- 
course between  this  country  and  France.  I  am  most 
desirous  of  not  checking  that  intercourse,  but  that  is 


MAGISTRATES    OF    WES1  HEATH.  141 

not  the  question  which  has  been  brought  forward  by  my 
noble  friend.     (March  9th,  1832.) 

THE  MAGISTRATES  OF  WESTMEATH. 

My  Lords,  I  regret  as  much  as  any  man  the  warmth 
which  creeps  into  the  discussions  on  Irish  subjects,  and 
it  shall  always  be  my  desire  to  allay  it ;  but  I  beg  to 
remind  your  Lordships  that  this  irritation  is  not  the 
growth  of  the  present  day :  it  has,  in  fact,  existed  ever 
since  the  two  countries  were  united.  .  .  .  From 
my  residence  in  Ireland  I  am  enabled  confidently  to 
assert  that  no  set  of  men  are  more  anxious  to  perform 
the  duties  which  they  owe  to  the  country,  and  to  dis- 
charge the  labours  incident  on  the  magisterial  capacity, 
than  the  landed  gentry  in  Ireland.  They  do  their 
utmost  to  restore  in  the  country  the  peace  which  it  has 
lost,  but  the  success  of  their  exertions  must  eventually 
depend  on  their  uniting  with  the  Government.  .  . 
I  fully  agree  with  the  noble  Earl  (Grey)  that  if  any 
force  is  to  be  called  into  action  for  the  suppression  of 
disturbances  in  Ireland  the  regular  force  and  not  the 
yeomanry  should  be  employed.  I  do  not  give  this 
opinion  from  any  dislike  of  the  yeomanry,  on  the  con- 
trary, that  force  appears  to  me  most  useful  and  consti- 
tutional ;  but  its  members  are  liable  to  be  influenced, 
particularly  in  Ireland,  by  party  spirit,  which  might  lead 
them  to  the  exercise  of  greater  violence  than  might  be 
either  prudent  or  desirable.  I  should,  therefore,  if  it 
be  resolved  to  apply  force,  prefer  voting  an  increase  to 
the  standing  army,  to  the  consenting  to  the  employment 
of  the  yeomanry  corps.  (April  6th,  1832.) 

A  NATIONAL  PASSION. 
My  dear  Sir, — The  conduct  of  the  Ministers  is  a  con- 


1 42  WORDS    OF    WELLINGTON. 

sequence  of  that  of  their  predecessors  in  office.  This  is 
a  very  easy  justification,  but  when  the  day  of  trial 
conies  it  will  be  found  to  fail  altogether.  Their  con- 
duct is  to  be  attributed  to  neither  more  nor  less  than 
ancient  faction,  fifty  years  old,  fears  of  the  French,  and 
a  desire  to  bolster  up  an  administration  for  Louis  Phi- 
lippe by  conniving  at  and  aiding  in  the  national  passion 
for  domination,  boasting,  and  bullying — that  is  the 
truth. — Believe  me,  ever  yours  most  sincerely,  WKL- 
LIXGTON.  (To  Thomas  Raikes,  Esq.  Strathfieldsaye, 
23rd  Nov.  1832.)* 

CHURCH  OF  ENGLAND  IN  IRELAND. 
Now,  whatever  may  be  thought  practicable  te  be 
done  with  respect  to  the  Church  of  England  in  England, 
I  can  have  no  objection  that  the  same  principle  should 
be  carried  into  effect  as  regards  the  Church  of  England 
in  Ireland ;  but  I  am  afraid  that  the  doctrine  laid  down 
in  the  speech  from  the  Throne — that  a  different  mea- 
sure of  reform  for  the  Church  of  England  may  be 
adopted  in  Ireland  from  that  which  may  be  considered 
necessary  to  be  applied  to  it  in  England — will  be  con- 
sidered in  Ireland  as  a  breach  of  the  Act  of  Union. 
There  is  yet  another  view  of  the  subject  which  I  cannot 
help  stating,  and  to  which  I  beg  the  particular  atten- 
tion of  the  noble  Earl.  It  is  this :  that  in  order  to 
maintain  the  Union  inviolate  it  is  absolutely  necessary 
to  pay  some  attention  to  the  feelings  of  the  Protestants 
of  Ireland.  I  am  happy  to  hear  that  his  Majesty's 
Ministers  are  about  to  adopt  efficient  measures  for  re- 
storing order  in  that  country.  ...  If  any  measures 
are  to  be  introduced,  the  effect  of  which  shall  be  to  in- 


*  Here  inserted  as  properly  belonging  to  Wellington's  parlia- 
mentary utterances. 


JURIES'    (IRELAND)    BILL.  143 

duce  the  Protestants  of  Ireland  to  believe  it  is  the  inten- 
tion of  the  Government  to  diminish  the  efficacy  of  the 
Church  of  England  in  Ireland,  it  will  be  impossible 
but  that  such  a  step  must  give  rise  to  the  greatest 
alarm ;  and  the  danger  to  the  Church  and  to  the  empire 
must  thereupon  become  indeed  imminent.  The  Pro- 
testants of  Ireland  are  the  friends  of  order  in  Ireland, 
and  they  are  the  natural  friends  and  connexions  of 
England  ;  and  I  entreat  the  noble  Earl  and  your  Lord- 
ships never  to  lose  sight  of  this  important  truth.  I 
would  further  beg  to  remind  the  noble  Earl  and  the 
House,  first,  that  his  Majesty  has  sworn  to  maintain  the 
Established  Church  of  England  in  Ireland ;  and,  secondly, 
that  in  the  very  last  arrangements  made  to  remove  the 
disabilities  as  well  of  the  Dissenters  from  the  Church  of 
England  as  of  the  Roman  Catholics  of  Ireland,  words 
were  inserted  in  the  oaths  to  be  taken  by  them  for  the 
security  of  the  Protestant  Establishment.  I  consider 
these  oaths  as  principles,  and  that  we  ought  not  to  run 
counter  to  them  in  any  manner  whatever.  (Feb.  5th, 
1833.) 

JURIES'  (IRELAND)  BILL. 

.  .  .  Now  I  would  ask  why  is  the  £15  leaseholder 
in  Ireland  to  be  considered  equal  to  the  £20  householder 
in  England  ?  Is  it  not  known  that  persons  of  the  for- 
mer class  are  men  in  the  humbler  walks  of  life,  generally 
under  the  dominion  of  their  priests.  Are  such  men  fit 
to  discharge  impartially  the  functions  of  jurors?  Whv 
not  give  the  duty  to  those  in  a  more  elevated  sphere  in 
life,  on  whom  we  can  place  much  greater  reliance  ?  I 
maintain  that  in  Ireland  it  is  absolutely  necessary  to  take 
the  administration  of  justice  out  of  the  hands  of  the  lower 
and  middle  classes,  and  assign  it  to  the  more  respectable 


144  WORDS    OF    WELLINGTON. 

and  independent  branches  of  the  community;  and  further 
I  contend  that  with  this  view,  and  in  order  to  keep  the 
administration  of  justice  pure,  the  qualification  of  jury- 
men in  Ireland  should  be  higher  than  in  this  country. 

.  .  .  No  country  possesses  greater  local  advan- 
tages than  she  (Ireland)  does.  Her  ports,  bays,  and 
rivers  give  every  facility  for  commerce  ;  her  soil  is  rich, 
and  she  has  a  population  generally  disposed  to  industry 
of  not  less  than  8,000,000  ;  yet  with  all  these  advantages 
she  is  rather  a  burden  than  a  relief  to  this  country,  for 
she  does  not  contribute  anything  like  one-third  to  the 
exigencies  of  the  State,  which  she  might  do,  if  her  re- 
sources were  properly  brought  forth,  and  if  a  system 
were  firmly  established  which  would  effectually  secure  the 
rights  of  property,  and  do  justice  between  man  and  man. 
(April  26tfi,  1833.) 

WEST  INDIA  SLAVE  TRADE. 

I  tell  the  noble  lord  (Suffield)  that  I  have  done  as 
much  for  the  abolition  of  slavery  and  the  slave  trade  as 
any  man.  I  have  been  engaged  in  more  negotiations, 
and  have  written  more  official  notes  and  papers  on  the 
subject  of  abolition  than  any  man  now  alive.  There 
was  a  noble  friend  of  mine  who  did  still  more,  but  with 
the  exception  of  him,  no  man  ever  did  more,  or  went 
further  into  the  business,  than  I  did,  when  in  an  official 
situation.  (May  17th,  1833.) 

SLAVERY. 

.  .  .  From  the  first  occupation  of  the  West  India 
Colonies  down  to  the  present  time  the  question  of  slavery 
has  always  been  a  question  of  difficulty  and  danger.  Over 
and  over  again  it  has  been  the  cause  of  insurrection.  It 
has  caused  more  difficulties  and  more  evils  than  any  other 
question  whatever.  At  this  moment  it  is  not  more  cer- 


THE  IRISH   CHURCH.  145 

tain  than  it  was  two  centuries  ago  that  the  black  man 
can  be  brought  to  labour  without  that  species  of  com- 
pulsion which  is  practicable  only  when  he  is  in  a  state 
of  slavery.  It  is  still  quite  uncertain  whether  he  can  be 
brought  to  work  for  hire,  if  liberated,  which  after  all  is 
the  real  question ;  and  therefore  it  is  necessary  to  be 
extremely  cautious  in  our  proceedings.  .  .  .  (June 
4th,  1833.) 

GOVERNORS  GENERAL. 

.  .  .  I  have  seen  a  great  deal  of  Governors  General, 
and  have  also  means  of  judging  of  the  nature  and  extent 
of  the  powers  intrusted  to  them  ;  and  the  result  of  my 
observations  is  a  conviction  that  they  are  vested  with  as 
much  power  as  they  can  desire  to  have,  or  can  exercise 
with  satisfaction  to  themselves  or  those  under  them. 
(July  5th,  1833.) 

CHURCH  TEMPORALITIES'  BILL  (IRELAND). 

I  consider  the  Bill  entirely  inconsistent  with  the  policy 
of  the  country  since  the  period  of  the  Reformation,  but 
more  especially  that  it  is  inconsistent  with  the  policy  of 
the  country  since  the  Revolution.  Since  the  period  of 
the  Revolution  it  has  been  the  uniform  object  of  the  Par- 
liament to  maintain  the  Protestant  Established  Church 
in  Ireland  in  all  its  integrity.  That  object  has  been 
clearly  shown  in  later  times- — in  the  repeal  of  the  Test 
and  Corporation  Acts  in  1828,  and  in  that  greater 
measure  which  was  introduced  the  year  following — the 
measure  of  Catholic  Emancipation.  In  both  of  those 
measures  it  was  easily  to  be  seen  that  the  first  object  of 
Parliament  was  to  maintain,  as  lar  as  possible,  the  Pro- 
testant religion  in  Ireland  as  established  at  the  Union  ; 
yet  now  a  measure  of  reform  in  that  Church  is  proposed 
to  us  which  is  contrary  to  all  former  policy,  and  which 
L 


146  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

I  will  maintain  is  the  necessary  consequence  of  the 
measure  of  last  year — a  measure  which  I  cannot  cease 
to  deplore.  (July  Ilth,  1833.) 

"  AGITATION  "  IN  IRELAKD. 

.  .  .  In  order  that  your  Lordships  may  understand 
what  agitation  is,  I  will  take  leave  to  describe  it.  First 
of  all  it  is  founded  upon  a  conspiracy  of  demagogues, 
priests,  and  monks,  and  the  means  are  terror  and  mobs, 
to  be  employed  wherever  terror  and  mobs  can  be  used. 
This  is  to  produce  an  effect  upon  Ministers  and  an  alarm 
in  Parliament,  and  the  mobs  are  excited  by  orations  and 
seditious  speeches  at  public  meetings,  by  violent  pub- 
lications through  the  press,  by  exaggeration,  by  flattery, 
and  by  all  the  resources  in  the  power  of  persons  of  that 
description.  The  people  are  called  upon  to  repair  in 
large  bodies  to  all  points  where  it  is  possible  to  create 
terror.  If  any  person  opposes  himself  to  this  design 
he  is  immediately  murdered,  or  his  house  and  property 
destroyed.  The  least  thing  is  a  combination  to  deprive 
him  of  the  means  of  obtaining  subsistence ;  and  all  is  in- 
tended to  destroy  the  peace  of  the  country.  This  is  the 
system  which  is  called  agitation.  (July  19,  1833.) 

EMANCIPATION  OF  THE  JEWS. 

.  .  .  The  noble  and  learned  Lord  on  the  woolsack 
has  endeavoured  to  show  that  by  retaining  the  words 
"  upon  the  true  faith  of  a  Christian  "  upon  the  statute 
book,  you  encourage  men  who  have  no  regard  to  the 
obligation  of  an  oath,  and  thus  maintain  hypocrisy,  while 
it  operates  as  a  restriction  upon  conscientious  persons. 
"  You  admit,"  says  the  noble  and  learned  Lord,  "  men 
like  Mr.  Wilkes,  Lord  Shaftesbury,  or  Lord  Boling- 
broke,  but  you  shut  out  conscientious  men  who  will  not 


EMANCIPATION    OF   JEWS.  147 

take  the  oath."  I  am  prepared  to  allow  that  there  are 
some  men  whom  no  oath  or  affirmation  can  reach,  but 
this  is  no  reason  why  we  should  give  up  every  test  and 
oath.  Are  we  on  this  account  to  throw  aside  every 
guard  for  the  maintenance  of  Christianity  in  the  country  ? 
The  right  reverend  Prelate  has  stated  very  clearly  and 
plainly  the  reasons  why  we  should  not  pass  this  Bill — 
namely,  that  this  is  a  Christian  country,  and  a  Christian 
legislature,  and  that  therefore  the  Parliament,  composed 
as  it  is  of  Lords  Spiritual  and  Temporal  and  Commons, 
cannot  advise  the  Sovereign,  as  head  of  the  Church,  to 
sanction  a  law  which  will  remove  the  peculiar  character 
from  the  Legislature.  I  say  that  we  cannot  advise  the 
Sovereign  on  the  throne  to  pass  a  law  which  will  admit 
persons  to  all  offices,  and  into  the  Parliament  of  the 
country,  who,  however  respectable  they  may  be,  still  are 
not  Christians,  and  therefore  ought  not  to  be  allowed  to 
legislate  for  a  Christian  church.  The  noble  Marquis, 
for  whom  I  entertain  the  highest  respect,  seemed  sur- 
prised that  I  smiled  when  the  noble  Marquis  spoke  in 
somewhat  extravagant  terms  of  the  distinctions  which 
have  been  acquired  by  these  persons  in  foreign  coun- 
tries. I  must  apologize  to  the  noble  Marquis  for  having 
smiled  at  that  moment,  but  it  certainly  appeared  to  me 
that  the  noble  Marquis  was  rather  extravagant  in  his 
praise,  and  I  may  be  allowed  to  add  that  I  have  never 
been  so  fortunate  as  to  hear  of  these  persons  being  in  the 
stations  which  he  described.  The  noble  Marquis  stated 
that  there  were  no  fewer  than  fifteen  officers  of  the  Jewish 
religion  at  the  battle  of  Waterloo ;  I  have  not  the  least 
doubt  that  there  are  many  officers  of  that  religion  of 
great  merit  and  distinction,  but  still  I  must  again  repeat 
they  are  not  Christians,  and  therefore,  sitting  as  I  do  in 
a  Christian  legislature,  I  cannot  advise  the  Sovereign  on 


148  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

the  throne  to  sanction  a  law  to  admit  them  to  seats  in 
this  House  and  the  other  House  of  Parliament,  and  to 
all  the  rights  and  privileges  enjoyed  by  Christians. 
(Aug.  1,  1833.) 

ABOLITION  OF  SLAVERY  BILL. 

.  .  .  With  respect  to  the  first  topic  adverted  to  in 
the  Speech,  as  well  as  by  the  noble  Duke  opposite,  who 
moved  the  Address,  and  by  the  noble  Lord  who  seconded 
it, — I  mean  the  Bill  for  the  Abolition  of  Slavery  in  our 
West  India  Colonies, — I  can  truly  say  that  there  is  no 
man  who  rejoices  more  sincerely  than  I  do  in  the  success 
which  is  stated  to  have  attended  that  measure.  My 
Lords,  I  certainly  opposed  it  from  its  commencement  ;  I 
thought  that  I  foresaw  in  that  measure  great  injury  to 
the  interests  of  this  country.  I  am  very  happy  to  find 
that  I  was  deceived  or  misinformed  in  entertaining  that 
opinion.  I  am  afraid,  however,  that  the  noble  Lords 
opposite  are  rather  premature  in  their  accounts  of  the 
entire  success  of  that  measure.  I  do  not  understand, 
either  from  what  I  have  seen,  or  from  what  I  have  heard 
of  what  has  passed  in  the  West  Indies,  that  it  has  entirely 
succeeded.  .  .  .  The  state  of  society  in  the  colonies 
we  declared,  by  the  Act  we  passed,  should  be  changed 
from,  one  in  which  slavery  existed  into  one  in  which 
slavery  should  no  longer  be  permitted  to  exist.  The 
utmost  the  Legislature  of  Jamaica  have  done  has  been  to 
adopt  the  law  as  it.  was  passed  in  this  country,  but  they 
have  taken  no  measures  to  carry  it  into  execution  ;  they 
have  made  no  law  to  provide  for  the  new  state  of  society 
which  we  declared  should  be  established  ;  and  they  have 
thrown  the  responsibility  of  this  omission  on  the  Govern- 
ment of  this  country.  Really,  my  Lords,  I  cannot  think 
that  this  is  quite  a  successful  state  of  affairs  in  the  Island 


STATE  OF  IRELAND.  149 

of  Jamaica.  I  do  not  mean  to  charge  this  state  of  affair* 
upon  his  Majesty's  Government,  but  I  do  mean  to  say 
that  this  is  not  such  a  state  of  affairs  as  we  could  have 
wished.  (Feb.  4,  1834.)  * 

SIR  JOHN  CAMPBELL. 

I  cannot  omit  the  present  opportunity  of  bearing  my 
testimony  to  the  respectability  of  Sir  John  Campbell, 
both  as  a  British  officer  and  as  a  gentleman.  It  appears 
from  what  the  noble  Earl  has  stated,  that  the  Govern- 
ment has  taken  very  considerable  pains  in  order  to  have 
justice  done  to  that  gentleman.  In  my  opinion  Sir 
John  Campbell  was  in  the  service  of  Don  Miguel  with- 
out the  permission  of  his  Majesty,  and  was,  therefore, 
guilty  of  a  breach  of  the  Foreign  Enlistment  Act.  But 
still  I  do  not  consider  that  he  thereby  forfeits  his  Ma- 
jesty's protection  when  in  a  foreign  country.  (May  6th, 
1834.) 

STATE  OF  IRELAND. 

The  noble  Viscount  (Melbourne)  has  drawn  a  com- 
parison between  the  state  of  this  country  and  the  state 
of  Ireland.  He  has  said  very  truly  that  this  country 
would  not  tamely  bear  such  provisions  in  Act  of  Parlia- 
ment as  are  to  be  found  even  in  this  Bill  which  we  are 
now  going  to  pass.  But,  my  Lords,  let  him  show  me, 
not  only  in  his  Majesty's  dominions  but  anywhere,  such 
a  state  of  insecurity  for  life  and  property  as  exists  in 
Ireland  at  the  present  moment — let  him  show  me  in  any 
country,  I  care  not  where  it  is, — in  the  wilds  of  America, 
Africa,  or  Asia,  such  a  state  of  society  as  exists  at  this 
moment  in  the  kingdom  of  Ireland.  I  defy  him  to  do 
so.  (July  29^,  1834.) 


i So  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

LORD  NELSON. 

Some  one  was  talking  of  Lord  Nelson,  and  instances 
were  mentioned  of  the  egotism  and  vanity  which  dero- 
gated from  his  character. 

"Why,"  said  the  Duke  of  Wellington,  "lam  not 
surprised  at  such  instances,  for  Lord  Nelson  was  in  dif- 
ferent circumstances — two  quite  different — even  as  I 
myself  can  vouch,  though  I  only  saw  him  once  in  my 
life,  and  for  perhaps  an  hour.  It  was  soon  after  I  re- 
turned from  India  (in  1805).  I  went  to  the  Colonial 
Office  in  Downing  Street,  and  there  I  was  shown  into 
the  waiting-room  on  the  right  hand,  where  I  found,  also 
waiting  to  see  the  Secretary  of  State,  a  gentleman 
whom,  from  his  likeness  to  his  pictures  and  the  want  of 
an  arm,  I  immediately  recognized  as  Lord  Nelson.  He 
could  not  know  who  I  was,  but  he  entered  at  once  into 
conversation  with  me — if  I  can  call  it  conversation — for 
it  was  almost  all  on  his  side,  and  all  about  himself,  and 
in  really  a  style  so  vain  and  so  silly  as  to  surprise  me. 
I  suppose  something  that  I  happened  to  say  made  him 
guess  that  I  was  somebody,  and  he  went  out  of  the 
room  for  a  moment,  I  have  no  doubt  to  ask  the  office- 
keeper  who  I  was,  for  when  he  came  back  he  was 
altogether  a  different  man,  both  in  manner  and  matter. 
All  that  I  had  thought  was  a  charlatan -style  disap- 
peared, and  he  talked  of  the  state  of  this  country,  and 
of  the  aspect  and  probabilities  of  affairs  on  the  Conti- 
nent, with  a  good  sense  and  a  knowledge  of  subjects, 
both  at  home  and  abroad,  that  surprised  me  equally  and 
more  agreeably  than  the  first  part  of  our  interview  had 
done ;  in  fact  he  talked  like  an  officer  and  a  statesman. 

The  Secretary  of  State  kept  us  long  waiting,  and 
certainly,  for  the  last  half  or  three-quarters  of  an  hour, 


RAILWAYS.  151 

I  don't  know  that  I  ever  had  a  conversation  that  inter- 
ested me  more.  Now,  if  the  Secretary  of  State  had  been 
punctual,  and  admitted  Lord  Nelson  in  the  first  quarter 
of  an  hour,  I  should  have  had  the  same  impression  of 
a  light  and  trivial  character  that  other  people  have  had; 
but  luckily  I  saw  enough  to  be  satisfied  that  he  was 
really  a  very  superior  man.  But  certainly  a  more  sud- 
den and  complete  metamorphosis  I  never  saw.  (  Walmer, 
Oct.  1st,  1834.) 

THE  MILITIA. 

The  Militia  is  a  force  by  which  the  Government  is 
enabled  at  a  small  expense,  and  without  keeping  up  an 
unconstitutional  force,  always  to  put  the  country  in  that 
state  of  preparation  in  which  a  great  nation  ought  ever 
to  be,  but  in  which  this  country  cannot  be,  in  reference 
to  the  other  Powers  of  Europe  without  such  aid.  (Aug. 
Idth,  1835.) 

LOYAL  SUPPORT. 

.  .  .  I  have  never  depended  for  support  upon  any 
party  but  the  loyal  subjects  of  his  Majesty.  I  have 
never  depended  for  support  upon  an  individual  who  had 
been  convicted  of  a  misdemeanour,  and  who,  after 
having  been  so  convicted,  was  promoted  by  the  Minis- 
ters of  the  Crown.  (Sept.  2nd,  1835.) 

RAILWAYS. 

I  certainly  have  a  very  strong  feeling  on  the  subject 
of  all  these  railways  to  be  traversed  by  the  aid  of  steam. 
I  sincerely  wish  that  all  those  projects  could  prove  suc- 
cessful ;  but  in  proportion  as  they  may  be  successful,  in 
the  same  proportion  is  it  desirable  that  there  should  not 
be  a  perpetual  monopoly  established  in  the  country. 
Under  these  circumstances  I  have  a  strong  feeling  that 


I5z  WORDS   OF  WELLINGTON. 

it  is  desirable  to  insert  in  all  these  Bills  some  clause  to 
enable  the  Government  or  the  Parliament  to  revise  the 
enactments  contained  in  them  at  some  future  specific 
period.  I  conceive  that  by  carrying  these  measures 
into  execution  a  very  great  injustice  is  often  done  to 
many  landed  proprietors  in  the  country ;  and  they  are 
forced  either  to  submit  to  great  inconvenience,  or  to 
contend  against  that  inconvenience  by  incurring  a  very 
large  expense,  both  in  this  and  in  the  other  House  of  Par- 
liament. If  some  measure  of  the  description  to  which 
I  allude  be  not  adopted,  and  if  these  railways  are  to 
become  monopolies  in  the  hands  of  the  present  or  of 
future  proprietors,  we  shall  hereafter  be  only  enabled  to 
get  the  better  of  such  monopolies  by  forming  fresh 
lines  of  road,  to  the  further  detriment  of  the  interests 
of  the  landed  proprietors,  and  at  a  great  increase  of 
expense  and  inconvenience.  These  circumstances  have 
most  forcibly  struck  my  mind.  I  have  had  the  subject 
under  consideration  for  some  days;  I  have  conversed 
with  others  respecting  it,  and  it  appears  to  me  that  some 
plan  ought  to  be  devised  in  order  to  bring  these  rail- 
roads under  the  supervision  of  Parliament  at  some 
future  period.  (June  3rd,  1836.) 

POST-OFFICE  COMMISSIONERS  BiLt. 

There  can,  my  Lords,  be  no  doubt  whatever  that  the 
Post-Office  is  one  of  the  most  important  departments  of 
the  Government,  and  that  his  Majesty's  Ministers  are 
highly  interested  in  the  good  management  of  that  de- 
partment. ...  I  know  enough  of  the  working  of 
the  Post- Office  to  be  able  to  say  that  it  has  worked  well. 
It  is  quite  certain  that  up  to  this  period  the  Post-Office 
has  been  administered  in  a  way  highly  beneficial  to  his 
Majesty's  service,  and  I  will  say,  that  administered  as  it 


IRISH  PROTESTAXT  PETITION.  153 

is,  it  is  far  better  administered  tlian  any  Post-Office  in 
Europe,  or  any  other  part  of  the  world  ;  and  before  I 
make  any  change  in  the  administration  of  that  office 
I  should  like  to  see  the  grounds  on  which  the  change  is 
sought  to  be  made.  I  do  not  care  whether  the  Post- 
master-General is  to  have  a  seat  in  this  House,  or 
whether  the  head  of  the  Post- Office  shall  be  a,  Member 
of  the  House  of  Commons,  though  that  is  not,  in  my 
opinion,  an  unimportant  part  of  the  question,  but  I 
want  to  know  the  grounds  on  which  it  is  recommended 
to  make  a  Board  of  Commissioners  and  two  or  three 
Secretaries  for  England,  Ireland,  and  Scotland.  (Aug. 
12th,  1836.) 

IRISH  PROTESTANT  PETITION. 

I  always  had  the  greatest  disinclination  to  take  a  part 
in  the  discussions  of  such  questions  as  the  present,  but 
under  the  circumstances  of  the  case  I  feel  myself  called 
upon  to  offer  a  few  observations  to  your  Lordships.  It 
has,  my  Lords,  been  always  my  wish,  my  sincerest  wish, 
a  wish  which  I  have  frequently  stated  to  this  House,  to 
see  the  Protestants  of  Ireland  on  the  best  possible  terms 
with  the  Government,  and  to  see  that  Government 
affording  to  them  every  protection  in  its  power.  It  is 
my  firm  and  decided  conviction  that  the  safety  of  this 
country,  that  the  continuance  of  the  Union  and  the 
stability  of  the  empire,  are  in  a  great  measure,  if  not 
entirely,  dependent  upon  the  good  understanding  exist- 
ing between  the  Government  of  Ireland  and  the  Pro- 
testant population  of  that  country.  I  am  also  equally 
certain  that,  safety  for  Protestant  property  and  Protes- 
tant person  in  Ireland  must  mainly  depend  upon  the 
good  understanding  which  exists  between  them  and  the- 
Government.  Matters  can  never  by  possibility  go  right 


154  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

without  such  an  understanding.  This,  my  Lords,  was 
my  opinion  expressed  seven  years  ago,  and  it  is  an 
opinion  in  which  I  am  now  even  more  and  more  con- 
firmed. (April  28th,  1837.) 

MUNICIPAL  CORPORATIONS  (IRELAND). 

.  .  .  Now  in  forming  corporations  for  Ireland  the 
greatest  possible  care  should  be  taken,  first  of  all,  that 
no  injury  should  be  done  to  the  Church,  that  no  estab- 
lishment should  be  formed  that  could  prove  injurious  to 
the  Church,  and  in  the  next  place,  that  by  every  means 
in  our  power  we  should  take  care  nothing  we  did  should 
give  an  influence,  a  paramount  influence,  to  those  in  the 
lower  classes  of  society,  who  are  most  likely  to  be  under 
the  dictation  of  those  who  are  opposed  to  the  Protestant 
religion  in  Ireland.  (May  5th,  1837.) 

WILLIAM  IV. 

It  has  fallen  to  my  lot  to  serve  his  Majesty  at  differ- 
ent periods  and  in  different  situations,  and  while  I  had 
the  happiness  of  doing  so,  upon  all  those  occasions  I 
have  witnessed  not  only  all  the  virtues  ascribed  to  him 
by  the  noble  Viscount  (Melbourne),  but  likewise  a  firm- 
ness, a  discretion,  a  candour,  a  justice,  a  spirit  of  con- 
ciliation towards  others,  and  a  respect  for  all.  Probably 
there  never  was  a  sovereign  who,  in  such  circumstances 
and  encompassed  by  so  many  difficulties,  more  success- 
fully met  them  than  he  did  upon  every  occasion  that  he 
had  to  engage  them.  I  was  induced  to  serve  his  Majesty 
not  only  from  my  sense  of  duty,  not  alone  from  the 
feeling  that  the  Sovereign  of  this  country  has  the  right 
to  command  my  services  in  any  situation  in  which  I 
consider  I  can  be  of  use,  but  from  a  feeling  of  grati- 


THE    QUEEN'S   HOUSEHOLD.  155 

tude  to  his  Majesty  for  favours  conferred  on  me,  for 
personal  distinctions  conferred  on  me  notwithstanding 
that  I  had  been  unfortunately  in  the  situation  of  being 
under  the  necessity  of  opposing  myself  to  his  Majesty's 
views  and  intentions  when  he  was  employed  in  a  high 
situation  under  Government,  and  in  consequence  of 
which  he  had  to  resign  a  great  office  which  he  must 
beyond  all  others  have  been  most  anxious  to  retain  ; 
notwithstanding  that,  my  Lords,  his  Majesty  employed 
me  in  his  service,  and  he,  as  a  sovereign,  manifested 
towards  me  a  kindness,  condescension  and  favour,  which 
long  as  I  live  I  can  never  forget.  I  considered  myself 
then  not  only  bound  by  duty  and  the  sense  I  feel  of 
gratitude  to  all  the  sovereigns  of  this  country,  but  more 
especially  towards  his  late  Majesty,  to  have  relieved  him 
from  every  difficulty  I  could  under  any  circumstances. 
(June  22nd,  1837.) 

QUEEN  VICTORIA'S  HOUSEHOLD. 

I  confess  that  it  appeared  to  me  impossible  that  any 
set  of  men  should  take  charge  of  her  Majesty's  Govern- 
ment, without  having  the  usual  influence  or  control  over 
the  establishment  of  the  Royal  household — that  influence 
and  control  which  their  immediate  predecessors  in  office 
had  exercised  before  them.  (Loud  cheers  from  the  Op- 
position benches.)  As  the  Royal  household  was  formed 
by  their  predecessors  in  office,  the  possession  of  that  in- 
fluence and  that  control  over  it  appears  to  me  to  be 
especially  necessary  to  let  the  public  see  that  the  minis- 
ters who  were  about  to  enter  upon  office  had  and  pos- 
sessed the  entire  confidence  of  her  Majesty.  I  considered 
well  the  nature  of  the  formation  of  the  Royal  household 
under  the  Civil  List  Act,  passed  on  the  commencement 
of  her  Majesty's  reign.  I  considered  well  the  difference 


156  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

between  the  household  of  a  Queen  Consort  and  the  house- 
hold of  a  Queen  Regnant,  the  Queen  Consort  not  being 
a  political  person  in  the  same  light  as  a  Queen  Regnant. 
I  considered  the  construction  of  her  Majesty's  household ; 
I  considered  who  filed  offices  in  it;  I  considered  all  the 
circumstances  attendant  upon  the  influence  of  the  house- 
hold, and  the  degree  of  confidence  which  it  might  be 
necessary  for  the  Government  to  repose  in  the  members 
of  it.  I  was  sensible  of  the  serious  and  anxious  nature 
of  the  charge  which  the  minister  in  possession  of  that 
control  and  influence  over  her  Majesty's  household  would 
have  laid  upon  him.  I  was  sensible  that  in  everything 
which  he  did,  and  that  in  every  step  which  he  took  as 
to  the  household  he  ought  to  consult,  not  only  the  honour 
of  her  Majesty's  Crown,  and  her  royal  state  and  dignity, 
but  also  her  social  condition,  her  ease,  her  convenience, 
her  comfort. ;  in  short,  everything  which  tended  to  the 
solace  and  happiness  of  her  life.  I  reflected  on  all  these 
considerations  as  particularly  incumbent  on  the  ministers 
who  should  take  charge  of  the  affairs  of  this  country. 
I  reflected  on  the  age,  the  sex,  the  situation,  and  the 
comparative  inexperience  of  the  Sovereign  on  the  throne; 
and  I  must  say  that  if  I  had  been,  or  if  I  was  to  be,  the 
first  person  to  be  consulted  with  regard  to  the  exercise 
of  the  influence  and  control  in  question,  I  would  suffer 
any  inconvenience  whatever  rather  than  take  any  step 
as  to  the  royal  household  which  was  not  compatible  with 
her  Majesty's  comforts.  There  was  another  subject 
which  I  took  into  consideration — I  mean  the  possibility 
of  making  any  conditions  or  stipulations  in  respect  to 
the  exercise  of  this  influence  and  control  over  the  house- 
hold. It  appeared  to  me  that  the  person  about  to  un- 
dertake the  direction  of  the  affairs  of  this  country  who 
should  make  such  stipulations  or  conditions,  would  do 


ASSENT  TO  ADDRESS.  157 

neither  more  nor  less  th:m  this, — stipulate  that  he  would 
not  perform  Lis  duty,  that  he  would  not  advise  the 
Crown  in  a  case  in  which  he  thought  it  his  duty  to  advise 
the  Crown,  in  order  that  he  might  obtain  plaee.  I  thought 
that  no  man  could  make  such  a  stipulation,  and  consider 
himself  worthy  of  her  Majesty's  confidence,  or  entitled 
to  conduct  the  affairs  of  the  country.  I  thought  it  im- 
possible that  such  a  stipulation  should  be  made.  Nor 
did  I  think  it  possible  that  the  Sovereign  could  propose 
such  a  stipulation  or  condition  to  any  one  whom  her 
Majesty  considered  worthy  of  her  confidence.  (14<A 
May,  1837.) 

IN  ANSWER  TO  THE  QUEEN'S  SPEECH. 

My  Lords,  I  have  great  satisfaction  in  rising  upon  this 
occasion  to  give  my  assent  to  the  Address  moved  by  the 
illustrious  Prince  opposite  (Duke  of  Sussex)  in  answer 
to  the  Speech  delivered  by  her  Majesty  from  the  throne. 
My  Lords,  I  have  so  little  objection  either  to  that  gracious 
Speech  or  to  the  Address  moved  by  the  illustrious  Prince, 
that  I  should  have  thought  it  unnecessary  to  address  one 
word  to  your  Lordships  upon  the  subject  if  it  had  not 
been  for  the  purpose  of  expressing  my  respect  for  her 
Majesty,  and  likewise  for  the  illustrious  Duke  who  has 
moved  the  Address  on  this  occasion.  I  shall  certainly 
follow  the  example  of  his  Royal  Highness  and  of  the 
noble  Lord  who  has  seconded  the  Address,  in  making  no 
observations,  either  upon  the  Speech  or  the  Address 
which  can  in  any  manner  occasion  any  irritation  of  feel- 
ing or  difference  of  opinion  on  the  part  of  any  noble  Lord 
on  either  side  of  the  House.  My  Lords,  I  sincerely  con- 
gratulate your  Lordships  that  on  this  first  occasion  upon 
which  her  Majesty  has  addressed  the  Parliament  called 
by  herself,  it  is  in  the  power  of  this  House  to  return  an 


i .5 8  WORDS   OF  WELLINGTON. 

answer  to  her  Majesty  which  shall  be  unanimous  !  It  is 
impossible  that  any  noble  Lords  could  have  addressed 
themselves  to  your  Lordships  with  more  judgment  and 
discretion  than  the  illustrious  Prince  and  the  noble  Lord 
who  last  addressed  you.  .  .  .  My  Lords,  I  hope  that 
during  every  moment  of  the  remainder  of  my  life  I  shall 
witness  the  prosperity  of  her  Majesty's  reign,  and  her 
individual  happiness.  I  can  say  no  more,  my  Lords,  to 
express  my  feelings  towards  that  illustrious  individual. 
.  .  .  I  will  not  trouble  your  Lordships  further  except 
to  express  an  anxious  hope  that  this  Address  will  be 
allowed  to  pass  unanimously.  (Nov.  20,  1837.) 

DISTURBANCES  IN  IRELAND. 

.  .  .  One  of  the  greatest  authorities  that  ever 
appeared  in  this  or  any  other  country — a  noble  relation 
of  mine — stated  that  "  agrarian  disturbances  in  Ireland 
were  to  be  attributed  to  political  agitation,  and  to  nothing 
else,  as  much  as  effect  was  to  be  attributed  to  cause  in 
any  instance  whatever.  (Nov.  27,  1837.) 

PRINCIPLE  OF  IMPRISONMENT  FOR  DEBT. 

One  of  the  causes  of  debt,  being  incurred  in  this 
country  is,  in  a  great  degree,  the  power  which  creditors 
at  present  possess  to  arrest  their  debtors  upon  mesne 
process  ;  and  I  still  further  believe  that  it  is  the  facility 
which  is  thus  given  of  obtaining  credit  that  has  been 
the  cause  of  the  great  mercantile  prosperity  of  the 
country.  The  enormous  transactions  upon  credit  are 
such,  that  both  individuals  and  the  public  generally, 
require  further  means  of  recovering  debts  than  exist  in 
other  countries.  (Dec.  5th,  1837.) 


THE   BALLOT.  159 

A  LITTLE  WAB. 

My  Lords,  I  entreat  you,  and  I  entreat  the  Govern- 
ment, not  to  forget  that  a  great  country  like  this  can 
have  no  such  thing  as  a  little  war.  They  must  under- 
stand that  if  they  enter  on  these  operations  they  must 
do  it  on  such  a  scale,  and  in  such  a  manner,  and  with 
such  determination  as  to  the  final  object  as  to  make  it 
quite  certain  that  those  operations  will  succeed,  and 
that  at  the  very  earliest  possible  period  after  the  season 
opens.  (Jan.  10/A,  1838.) 

TRADES'  UNIONS. 

I  rise  to  state  my  satisfaction  that  this  subject  has 
been  taken  into  discussion  in  another  place,  and  that 
a  committee  has  been  appointed  to  consider  the  combi- 
nation laws  in  general.  I  cannot  help  expressing  myself 
rejoiced  that  this  subject  has  come  thus  early  under  the 
consideration  of  Parliament,  because  I  believe  that  there 
is  no  grievance  existing  in  any  country  which  equals 
the  extent  of  abuses  that  are  carrying  on  in  all  parts  of 
this  united  and  hitherto  called  civilized  kingdom,  that 
equal  the  abuses  and  oppressions  that  are  inflicted  upon 
the  labouring  classes  by  this  system  of  combination.  I 
really  believe,  from  the  accounts  I  have  seen,  that  there 
is  scarcely  an  individual  who  is  dependent  on  his  labour 
for  his  subsistence,  and  that  there  is  hardly  any  one  who 
employs  him,  who  has  not  reason  to  complain  of  these 
combinations.  (Feb.  15th,  1838.) 

THE  BALLOT. 

My  Lords,  that  which  distinguishes  us  from  other 
countries  is  the  universal  publicity  of  our  conduct,  and 
the  open  avowal  of  our  sentiments  to  all  mankind ;  and 
I  should  be  exceedingly  sorry  to  find  men,  instead  of 


160  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

standing  forward  openly,  and  stating  their  opinions  in 
the  face  of  day,  proceeding  in  a  sneaking  course,  and 
exercising  their  elective  franchise  under  a  secret  mode 
of  voting.  Happily  the  Constitution  of  this  country  has 
been  formed  not  only  for  the  protection  of  a  limited 
monarchy,  and  of  those  interests  which  are  immediately 
connected  with  it,  but  also  for  the  protection  of  pro- 
perty. Your  Lordships  are  called  on  to  provide  for 
the  protection  of  property  and  the  security  of  the 
Church,  as  well  as  for  the  security  of  liberty  and  life ; 
and  I  hope  that  in  all  our  deliberations  we  shall  never 
lose  sight  of  those  most  important  objects.  (Feb.  23;-rf, 
1848.) 

A  FREE  PRESS  IN  MALTA. 

I  was  much  struck  on  reading  the  Report  which  I 
now  hold  in  my  hand.  It  appears  to  have  been  sent  to 
Malta  for  one  purpose,  and  one  only  ;  it  has  effected 
one  purpose  and  one  only ;  it  has  produced  a  Report  on 
a  free  press,  and  has  enabled  the  noble  Lord  to  write 
that  despatch  which  he  wrote  eight  months  after  he  re- 
ceived the  Report.  The  Commission  was  appointed  in 
September  to  inquire  into  a  variety  of  matters  con- 
nected with  the  government  of  Malta ;  but  it  struck  out 
nothing,  and,  as  my  noble  friend  says,  reported  on  no- 
thing for  the  first  few  months,  except  drawing  up  that 
proposition  for  the  establishment  of  a  free  press.  His 
Majesty,  in  the  Commission  he  issued,  called  the  atten- 
tion of  the  Commissioners  to  a  variety  of  subjects  con- 
nected with  the  civil  government  of  the  Lland  of  Malta, 
but  that  wliich  the  Commission  does  not  mention — cer- 
tainly it  is  not  excluded — are  the  words  "Free  Press." 
It  does  not  say  one  syllable  about  the  press.  AVhat, 
however,  did  the  Commission?  They  were  appointed 


A  FREE  PRESS  IX  MALTA.  161 

in  the  month  of  September,  they  landed  in  Malta  in  the 
month  of  October,  and  the  first  thing  they  did  was  to 
commence  an  inquiry  into  the  state  of  the  press,  as  if 
that  matter  was  the  most  important  and  pressing  of 
the  matters  that  interested  the  island.  At  the  end 
of  six  months  they  made  a  report,  which  has  been 
received. 

I  beg  your  Lordships  to  recollect  what  Malta  is.  It 
is  a  fortress  and  a  seaport,  a  great  naval  and  military 
arsenal  in  the  Mediterranean.  We  hold  it  by  conquest 
and  by  treaty  ai'ter  conquest.  We  hold  it  as  a  gn-at 
military  and  naval  arsenal,  and  as  nothing  else.  Why. 
we  might  just  as  well  talk  of  putting  a  free  press  on 
board  the  admiral's  ship  of  the  line  in  the  Mediter- 
ranean, of  setting  it  up  in  the  garrison  of  Gibraltar, 
or  of  sending  it  into  the  quarters  of  Sir  John  Colborne 
in  North  America.  A  free  press  in  Malta  !  The  very 
idea  is  contemptible.  A  free  press  in  the  Italian 
language  in  Malta  !  Malta  contains  100,000  inhabi- 
tants, and  the  report  itself  tells  us  that  the  greater 
proportion  of  those  inhabitants  cannot  understand  the 
Italian  language.  They  do  not  want  a  free  press  to 
watch  the  manner  in  which  the  English  soldiers  and 
sailors  perform  their  duty.  What  can  they  want  with 
a  free  press  in  Malta,  when  we  are  told  that  the  work- 
ing population  there  speak  no  language  but  the  Maltese? 
It  is  proposed  to  establish  a  free  press  for  a  population 
who  do  not  understand  the  language  in  which  it  is  to  be 
published,  and  who,  if  they  do  understand  it,  can  neither 
read  nor  write.  (May  3;-c?,  1838.) 


MISCELLANEOUS    ANECDOTES, 
LETTEES,  ETC.* 

HATDON'S  VISIT  TO  THE  DUKE  OF  WELLINGTON. 

Walmer  Castle,  Oct.  9,  1839. 

HE  Duke  of  Wellington  presents  his  compli- 
ments to  Mr.  Haydon.  If  Mr.  Haydon  will 
be  so  kind  as  to  come  to  Walmer  Castle 
whenever  it  may  suit  him,  the  Duke  will 
have  it  in  his  power  to  sit  to  him  for  a  picture  for  cer- 
tain gentlemen  at  Liverpool." 

This  invitation  was  eagerly  accepted,  and  the  journal 
which  follows  has  this  very  full  account  of  it :  "  October 
llth,  left  town  by  steam  for  Ramsgate.  Got  in  at 
half-past  six,  dined  and  set  off  in  a  chaise  for  Walmer, 
where  I  arrived  safely  in  hard  rain.  A  great,  bell  was 
rung  on  my  arrival ;  and  after  taking  tea  and  dressing, 
I  was  ushered  into  the  drawing-room  where  sat  his 
Grace,  with  Sir  Astley  Coopsr,  Mr.  Arbuthnot,  and  Mr. 

[*  It  has  been  thought  fit  to  add  to  the  utterances  of  the  great 
Duke  certain  anecdotes  from  various  sources, as  well  as  separate 
ana  and  maxims  of  the  speaker.  It  has  been  found  difficult 
to  assign  dates  to  the  majority  of  these,  and  they  are  there- 
fore left  without  any  attempt  at  classification. — ED.  Bayard 
Series.] 


THE  ABBE  DU  PRADT.  163 

Booth,  who  had  served  with  his  Grace  in  Spain.  His 
Grace  welcomed  me  heartily,  asked  how  I  came  down, 
and  fell  again  into  general  conversation.  He  talked 

of  ,  who  kept  the  Ship.  He  married  an  actress 

from  Astley's.  She  was  a  fine  lady  and  the  Duke  said, 
'  I  soon  saw  all  would  go  wrong  one  day,  for  whilst  I 
was  there,  somebody  said  he  wanted  something,  and 
madame,  with  the  air  of  a  Duchess,  replied,  '  she  would 

send  the  housemaid.'  That  wouldn't  do.  became 

bankrupt;  and  there  were  trinkets  belonging  to  her; 
but  she  preferred  her  trinkets  to  her  honour,  and  swore 
she  was  not  his  wife.'  The  Duke  talked  of  the  sea 
encroaching  at  Dover,  and  of  the  various  plans  to  stop 
it.  'What!  there  are  plans  ?'  said  Sir  Astley.  '  Yes,  yes, 
there  are  as  many  Dover  doctors  as  other  doctors,'  said 
he  ;  and  we  all  laughed. 

"  The  Duke  talked  of  Buonaparte  and  the  Abbe  dit 
Pradt,  and  said  '  there  was  nothing  like  hearing  both 
sides.'  Du  Pradt  in  his  book  (he  was  d  fureur  de 
memoires)  says,  that  whilst  a  certain  conversation  took 
place  at  Warsaw,  between  him  and  Napoleon,  the  Em- 
peror was  taking  notes.  At  Elba,  Napoleon  told  Douglas, 
who  told  the  Duke,  that  the  note  he  was  taking  was  a 
note  to  Maret  (Duke  of  Bassano)  as  follows  :  '  Renvoyez 
ce  coquin  la  a  son  archeveque.'  '  So,'  said  the  Duke, 
'  always  hear  both  sides.'  The  Duke  said  when  he 
rame  through  Paris,  in  1814,  Madame  de  Stael  had  a 
grand  party  to  meet  him.  Du  Pradt  was  there.  In 
conversation  he  said,  'Europe  owes  her  salvation  to  one 
man.  But  before  he  gave  me  time  to  look  foolish,'  added 
the  Duke, 'Du  Pradt  put  his  hand  on  his  own  breast 
and  said,  C'est  mui ! ' 

"  He  then  talked  of  Buonaparte's  system.  Sir  Astley 
used  the  old  cant — 'It  was  selfish.'  'It  was,'  said  the 


1 64  WORDS  OF   WELLINGTON. 

Duke, '  bullying  and  driving.'  Of  France,  be  said,  '  They 
robbed  each  other  and  then  poured  out  on  Europe  to  fill 
their  stomachs  and  pockets  by  robbing  others.' 

"  He  spoke  of  Don  Carlos — said  he  was  a  poor  creature. 
He  saw  him  at  Dorchester  House,  two  days  before  he 
escaped.  He  advised  him  not  to  think  of  it.  He  told 
him  '  All  we  are  now  saying  will  be  in  Downing  Street 
in  two  hours,  you  have  no  post.'  Carlos  said,  '  Zuma- 
lacarraguy  will  take  me  on.'  '  Before  you  move,'  replied 
his  Grace,  '  be  sure  he  has  got  one.'  (Here  was  the  man.) 
The  Duke  said  Carlos  affected  sickness — somebody  got 
into  his  bed  and  kept  the  farce  up — that  medicine  came — 
that  the  French  ambassador  behaved  like  a  noodle.  In- 
stead of  telegraphing  up  to  Bayonne,  which  would  have 
carried  the  news  there  in  two  hours,  he  set  off  in  his 
post  carriage  and  four  after  Don  Carlos,  when  he  must 
have  got  to  Bayonne,  or  near  it. 

"  The  Duke  talked  of  the  want  of  fuel  in  Spain — of 
what  the  troops  suffered,  and  how  whole  houses,  so  many 
to  a  division,  were  pulled  down  regularly,  and  paid  for, 
to  serve  as  fuel.  He  said  every  Englishman  who  has  a 
home  goes  to  bed  at  night.  He  found  bivouacking  was 
not  suitable  to  the  character  of  the  English  soldier.  He 
got  drunk  and  lay  down  under  any  hedge.  Discipline 
was  destroyed.  But  when  he  introduced  tents,  every 
soldier  belonged  to  his  tent,  and  drunk  or  sober,  he  got 
to  it,  before  he  went  to  sleep.  I  said,  '  Your  Grace,  the 
French  always  bivouac.'  '  Yes,'  he  replied,  '  because 
French,  Spanish,  and  all  other  nations,  lie  anywhere.  It 
is  their  habit.  They  have  no  homes.' 

"  The  Duke  said  the  natural  state  of  man  was  plunder. 
Society  was  based  on  security  of  property  alone.  It  was 
for  that  object  men  associated  ;  and  he  thought  we  were 
coming  to  the  natural  state  of  society  very  fast. 


VISIT  TO  THE  DUKE.          165 

"  I  studied  his  fine  head  intensely.  Arbuthnot  had 
begun  to  doze.  I  was  like  a  lamp  newly  trimmed,  and 
could  have  listened  all  night.  The  Duke  gave  a  tremen- 
dous yawn,  and  said,  '  It  is  time  to  go  to  bed.'  Candles 
were  rung  for.  He  took  two  and  lighted  them  him- 
self. The  rest  lighted  their  own.  The  Duke  took  one 
and  gave  me  (being  the  stranger)  the  other,  and  led  the 
way.  At  an  old  view  of  Dover  in  the  hall,  he  stopped 
and  explained  about  the  encroachments  of  the  sea.  I 
studied  him  again — we  all  held  up  our  candles.  .  .  . 

"  12th.  At  ten  we  breakfasted — the  Duke,  Sir  Astley, 
Mr.  Booth,  and  myself.  He  put  me  on  his  right.  '  Which 
will  ye  have,  black  tea  or  green  ? '  '  Black,  your  Grace.' 
'  Bring  black.'  Black  was  brought,  and  I  ate  a  hearty 
breakfast.  In  the  midst,  six  dear  healthy  noisy  children 
were  brought  to  the  windows.  '  Let  them  in,'  said  the 
Duke,  and  in  they  came,  and  rushed  over  to  him  saying, 
'  How  d'ye  do,  Duke  ?  How  d'ye  do,  Duke  ?'  One  boy, 
young  Grey,  roared,  '  I  want  some  tea,  Duke.'  '  You 
shall  have  it,  if  you  promise  not  to  slop  it  over  me  as  you 
did  yesterday.'  Toast  and  tea  were  then  in  demand.  Three 
got  on  one  side  and  three  on  the  other,  and  he  hugged 
'em  all.  Tea  was  poured  out,  and  I  saw  little  Grey  try 
to  slop  it  over  the  Duke's  frock  coat.  Sir  Astley  said, 
'  You  did  not  expect  to  see  this.'  They  all  then  rushed 
out  on  the  leads  by  the  cannon,  and  after  breakfast  I 
saw  the  Duke  romping  with  the  whole  of  them,  and  one 
of  them  gave  his  Grace  a  devil  of  a  thump 

•'  He  told  me  to  choose  my  room  and  get  my  light  in 
order,  and  after  hunting  he  would  sit.  I  did  so,  and 
about  two  he  gave  me  an  hour  and  a  half.  I  hit  his 
grand,  upright,  manly  expression.  He  looked  like  an 
eagle  of  the  gods  who  had  put  on  human  shape,  and  had 
got  silvery  with  age  and  service.  At  first  I  was  a  little 


1 66  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

affected,  but  I  hit  his  features,  and  all  went  off.  Riding 
had  made  him  rosy  and  dozy.  His  colour  was  fresh. 
All  the  portraits  are  too  pale.  I  found  that  to  imagine 
he  could  not  go  through  any  duty  raised  the  lion.  'Does 
the  light  hurt  your  Grace's  eyes  ?'  '  Not  at  all ;'  and  he 
stared  at  the  light  as  much  as  to  say,  '  I'll  see  if  you 
shall  make  me  give  in,  Signor  Light.' 

"  'Twas  a  noble  head.  I  saw  nothing  of  that  peculiar 
expression  of  mouth  the  sculptors  give  him,  bordering 
on  simpering.  His  colour  was  beautiful  and  fleshy,  his 
lips  compressed  and  energetic.  I  foolishly  said,  '  Don't 
let  me  fatigue  your  Grace.'  '  Well  sir,'  he  said,  '  I'll 
give  you  an  hour  and  a  half.  To-morrow  is  Sunday, 
Monday  I'll  sit  again.' 

"  At  seven  we  dined.  His  Grace  took  half  a  glass  of 
sherry  and  put  it  in  water.  I  drank  three  glasses,  Mr. 
Arbuthnot  one.  We  then  went  to  the  drawing-room, 
where,  putting  a  candle  on  each  side  of  him,  he  read 
the  Standard  whilst  I  talked  to  Mr.  Arbuthnot,  who 
said  it  was  not  true  Copenhagen  ran  away  on  the  field. 
He  ran  to  his  stable  when  the  Duke  came  to  Waterloo, 
after  the  battle,  and  kicked  out  and  gambolled. 

"  I  did  not  stay  up  to-night.  I  was  tired,  went  to  bed, 
and  slept  heartily.  It  was  most  interesting  to  see  him 
reading  away.  I  believe  he  read  every  iota.  We  talked 
of  Lord  Mulgrave  whom  his  Grace  esteemed.  Sir  Astley 
had  left  in  the  morning,  and  in  talking  of  the  Duke's 
power  of  conversation,  related  that  when  some  one  said, 
'  Habit  is  second  nature,'  the  Duke  remarked,  '  It  is  ten 
times  nature  ' 

"I  asked  the  Duke  if  Ca3sar  did  not  land  hereabouts. 
He  said  he  believed  near  Richborough  Castle. 

"  Sunday,  I  found  the  Duke  on  the  leads.  After  break- 
fast Mr.  Arbuthnot  told  me  to  so  to  the  village  church 


THE  DUKE  AT  (.'JU'RCH.  16- 

and  ask  for  the  Duke's  pew.     I  walked  there,  and  w;;s 
shown  into  a  large  pew  near  the  pulpit. 

"A  few  moments  after  the  service  had  begun,  tin- 
Duke  and  Mr.  Arbuthnot  came  up — no  pomp,  no  ser- 
vants in  livery  with  a  pile  of  books.  The  Duke  came 
into  the  presence  of  his  Maker  without  cant,  without 
affectation — a  simple  human  being. 

"From  the  bare  wainscot,  the  absence  of  curtains,  tl.  • 
dirty  green  footstools,  and  common  chairs,  I  feared  I 
wus  in  the  wrong  pew,  and  very  quietly  sat  myself 
down  in  the  Duke's  place.  Mr.  Arbuthnot  squeezed 
my  arm  before  it  was  too  late,  and  I  crossed  in  an  in- 
stant. The  Duke  pulled  out  his  prayer-book,  and  fol- 
lowed the  clergyman  in  the  simplest  way.  I  got  deeply 
affected.  .  .  .  At  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  the 
Duke  bowed  his  silvery  hairs  like  the  humblest  la- 
bourer, and  yet  not  more  than  others,  but  to  the  same 
degree.  He  seemed  to  wish  for  no  distinction.  At  the 
epistle  he  stood  upright  like  a  soldier,  and  when  the 
blessing  was  pronounced  he  buried  his  head  in  one 
hand,  and  uttered  his  prayer  as  if  it  came  from  his 
heart,  in  humbleness.  .  .  . 

"The  Duke  after  dinner  retired,  and  we  all  followed 
him.  He  then  took  the  'Spectator,'  and  placing  a  candle 
on  each  side  of  his  venerable  head,  read  it  through.  I 
watched  him  the  whole  time.  Young  Lucas  had  ar- 
rived— a  very  nice  fellow — and  we  both  watched  him. 

".  .  .  After  reading  till  his  eyes  were  tired,  he 
put  down  the  paper  and  said,  '  There  are  a  great  many 
curious  things  in  it,  I  assure  you.'  He  then  yawned, 
as  lie  always  did  before  retiring,  and  said,  '  I'll  give 
you  an  early  sitting  to-morrow  at  nine.'  .  .  .  J>y 
nine  the  door  opened  and  in  he  walked,  looking  ex- 
tremely worn — his  skin  drawn  tight  over  his  face  ;  his 


1 68  WORDS   OF  WELLINGTON. 

in  e  was  watery  and  aged,  his  head  nodded  a  little.  I 
put  the  chair,  he  mumbled,  '  I'd  as  soon  stand.'  I 
thought  he  would  get  tired,  but  I  said  nothing.  Down 
he  sat — how  altered  from  the  fresh  old  man  after  Satur- 
day's hunting !  It  affected  me.  He  looked  like  an  eagle 
beginning  to  totter  from  his  perch.  He  took  out  his 
watch  three  times,  and  at  ten  up  he  got  and  said,  '  It's 
ten.'  I  opened  the  door  and  he  went  out.  He  had 
been  impatient  all  the  time.  At  breakfast  he  bright- 
ened at  the  sight  of  the  children,  and,  after  distributing 
toast  and  tea  to  them,  I  got  him  on  art.  He  talked  of 
a  picture  of  Copenhagen  by  Ward,  which  the  Duke  of 
Northumberland  bought,  and  which  he  wanted,  and 
suddenly  looking  up  at  me  said,  '  D'ye  want  another 
sitting  ?'  '  If  you  please,  your  Grace.'  '  Very  well, 
after  hunting  I'll  come.'  Just  as  he  was  going  hunt- 
ing, or  whilst  he  was  out.  came  Count  Brunow,  the 
locum  tenens  of  Pozzo  di  Borgo,  the  Russian  Ambas- 
sador. Lady  Burghersh  came  in  from  Lady  Marlbo- 
rough's,  and  Mr.  Arbuthnot,  wanted  her  to  go  in  and 
talk  to  Brunow,  but  she  declined.  All  of  a  sudden  I 
heard  a  great  clatter,  and  the  servants  came  in  to  move 
the  great  table  for  lunch.  At  lunch  I  was  called 
in.  The  Duke,  Count  Brunow,  and  myself  lunched. 
At  three  he  came  in,  having  sent  Brunow  with 
Arbuthnot  pour  faire  un  tour.  Lady  Burghersh  came 
in  also;  and  again  he  was  fresher,  but  the  feebleness  of 
the  morning  still  affected  my  heart.  It  is  evident  at 
times  he  is  beginning  to  sink,  though  the  sea  air  at 
Walmer  keeps  him  up,  and  he  is  better  than  he  was. 

Lady  Burghersh  kept  him  talking,  but  the  expression 
I  had  already  hit  was  much  finer  than  the  present,  and 
I  resolved  not  to  endanger  what  I  had  secured.  I 
therefore  corrected  the  figure  and  shoulders,  and  told 


THE  DUKE'S   GOOD  NIGHT.  169 

Lady  Burghersh  I  had  done.  '  He  lias  done'  said  she, 
'  and  it's  very  fine.'  '  Is  it  though  Y  said  the  Duke  ; 
'  I'm  very  glad.'  '  And  now,'  said  she,  '  you  must 
stand.'  So  up  he  got,  and  1  sketched  two  views  of 
his  back,  his  hands,  legs,  &c.  &c.  I  did  him  so  in- 
stantaneously that  his  eagle  eyes  looked  me  right 
through  several  times,  when  he  thought  I  was  not 
looking.  As  it  was  a  point  of  honour  with  him  not 
to  see  any  sketch  connected  with  my  picture  he  never 
glanced  that  way.  He  looked  at  the  designs  for  the 
House  of  Lords  on  the  chimney-piece,  but  said  no- 
thing. He  then  retired,  and  appeared  gay  and  better, 
lie  had  put  on  a  fine  dashing  waistcoat  for  the  Russian 
Ambassador. 

"  At  lunch  the  Duke  said,  in  the  churches  of  Russia 
he  never  heard  a  single  cough  in  the  coldest  weather. 

"At  dinner  there  was  a  party — Lord  and  Lady  XIahon ; 

Colonel  D ,  a  captain  of  Horse  Artillery;  Brunow; 

Captain  V' ,  and  several  others.  Colonel  D 

had  the  Waterloo  medal  and  legion  of  honour.  He  was 
a  spirited  fellow,  but  had  too  much  of  the  mess-table, 
which  is  all  affected  sentiment,  boasting  justice  to  the 
enemies  of  England,  and,  in  fact,unideal  chatter  over  claret 
and  champagne.  Captain  V was  an  honest  old  boy. 

"  The  Duke  looked  well,  and  told  some  stories.  As 
Lady  Stuart  was  coming  from  the  tournament  with  a 
friend  they  got  into  a  railway  carriage,  where  sat  a  man 
who  did  not  move,  so  they  sat  down  beside  him.  At 
last  in  came  another,  who  begged  one  of  the  ladies  to 
sit  up,  because  he  must  sit  by  'his  convict.' 

"At  night,  as  I  took  leave  of  the  Duke,  he  said,  'I 
hope  you  are  satisfied.  Good-bye.'  1  heard  him  go 
to  bed  after  me,  laughing,  and  he  roared  out  to  Ar- 
buthnot,  'Good  night.'  I  then  heard  him  slam  the 


1 7o  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

door  of  his  room,  No.  11,  next  to  mine,  No.  10,  but  on 
the  opposite  side,  and  a  little  further  on.  I  soon  fell 
asleep  ;  was  off  at  six  for  Ramsgate,  and  dined  at  home 
at  five."* 

INVASION  AT  BOULOGNE. 

Since  I  Avrote  to  you  last  a  terrible  eoent  has  taken 
place.  I  mean  the  expedition  of  Louis  Napoleon  to 
Boulogne.  Those  desirous  of  fomenting  the  existing 
differences  and  jealousies  between  the  countries  will 
avail  themselves  of  this  event  to  promote  their  objects. 
(To  T.  Eaikes,  Esq.  Aug.  8th,  1840.) 

THE  PRESS. 

It  appears  to  me  that  the  newspapers  here  and  in 
France  are  again  becoming  less  pacific.  I  conclude 
that  they  write  what  will  please  their  renders  ;  and  upon 
such  a  question  as  that  whicli  now  occupies  the  minds 
of  men,  they  write  in  the  sense  most  agreeable  to  their 
friends  among  the  public.  I  sincerely  wish  that  I  could 
see  a  chance  of  bringing  this  affair  to  a  termination 
calculated  to  secure  the  peace  of  the  world.  (To  T. 
Eaikes,  Esq.  Walmer  Castle,  Sept.  5th,  1840.) 

PEACE  WITH  FRANCE. 

I  cannot  but  feel  hope  that  we  may  yet  see  peace 
preserved  between  these  two  nations,  whose  interest  is, 
on  both  sides,  so  essentially  involved  in  its  preservation. 
I  think  I  see  daylight.  But  it  is  difficult  to  form  a 
judgment  of  any  event  in  which  such  multitudes  take 
an  active  part,  and  are  so  little  reasonable.  A  little 
sound  sense  on  both  sides  would  have  a  wonderful  effect. 
(Ibid.  Sept.  12th,  1840.) 

*From  Tom  Taylor's  "Life  of  Havdon." 


WAR.  171 

ATTITUDE  OF  ENGLAND. 

I  am  certain  that  there  is  no  desire  in  this  country  on 
the  part  of  any  party,  I  may  almost  say  of  any  influ- 
ential individual,  to  quarrel  with,  much  less  t<>  d<>  any- 
thing offensive,  towards  France.  But  if  we  should  bl- 
under the  necessity  of  going  to  war,  you  will  witness  the 
most  extraordinary  exertions  ever  made  by  this  or  any 
country  in  order  to  carry  the  same  on  with  vigour,  how- 
ever undesirable  we  n;-iy  think  it  to  enter  into  it.  (To 
T.  Raikes,  Esq.  Walmer  Castle,  Oct.  4th,  1840.) 

ESCAPE  OF  Louis  PHILIPPE. 

.  .  .  It  is  very  clear  to  me  that  Louis  Philippe  h.is 
had  a  narrow  escape.  He  would  probably  have  been 
involved  in  naval  or  military  difficulties,  and  then  his 
state  would  have  been  the  same  as  that  of  all  sovereigns 
involved  in  foreign  war  by  domestic  factions,  who  cannot 
or  will  not  supply  the  means  of  carrying  on  the  ope- 
rations of  the  same  so  as  to  be  successful,  and  then  those 
who  occasion  the  war  are  loudest  in  their  complaints  of 
disgrace,  and  the  public  are  to  be  satisfied  by  hurling 
the  sovereign  from  the  throne,  and  a  fresh  revolution. 
This  is  the  natural  and  usual  course  of  such  events  and 
transactions.  (To  T.  Raikes,  Esq.  Wulmr.r  Castle, 
Nov.  4th,  1840.) 

RISK  OF  WAR. 

.  .  .  Of  this  I  am  very  certain, — any  power  who 
should  commence  a  war  upon  another  must  well  consider 
its  necessity,  and  the  risks  and  dangers  to  be  incurred 
by  commencing  it  on  the  one  hand,  and  by  avoiding  it 
on  the  other.  (To  T.  Raikes,  Esq.  Walmer  Castle, 
XOL:  Vth,  1840.) 


172  WORDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

FRANCE  AND  ENGLAND. 

.  .  .  My  opinion  is  that  France  and  England  at 
peace,  respecting  each  other,  and  each  the  rights  of  the 
other,  are  strong  enough  to  preserve  the  general  peace, 
and  to  prevent  the  oppression  of  the  weak  of  this  world 
by  the  strong.  (To  T.  Raikes,  Esq.  Strathfieldsaye, 
Dec.  23rd,  1840.) 

ISOLATION. 

.  .  .  I  have  no  confidence  in  the  system  of  isole- 
ment  (isolation).  It  does  not  answer  in  social  life  for 
individuals,  nor  in  politics  for  nations.  Man  is  a  social 
animal.  (To  T.  Raikes,  Esq.  London,  March  1st,  1841.) 

HATRED  OF  ENGLAND. 

The  detestation  of  us  in  France  is  wonderful.  But 
not  more  so  than  the  total  apathy  and  indifference  with 
which  is  viewed  in  England  this  state  of  the  feelings  of 
men  in  France.  (To  T.  Raikes,  Esq.  Walmer  Castle, 
Aug.  30th,  1842.) 

DIFFICULTIES. 

I  am  certain  that  it  is  possible  for  a  government,  as 
well  as  for  individuals  in  the  world,  to  avoid  being  in- 
volved in  difficulties.  (Tb  T.  Raikes,  Esq.  Strathfield- 
saye, Dec.  1st,  1842.) 

POLITICAL  STUDY. 

In  these  times  of  political  and  democratical  intrigue, 
it  is  impossible  to  acquire  at  first  sight  the  truth  upon 
any  subject.  It  can  be  acquired  only  by  laborious  study. 
.  .  .  .  Men  are  under  the  necessity  of  judging  of 
what  passes  before  their  eyes,  by  referring  to  antecedent 


DEMOCRACY.  173 

circumstances,  and  to  the  known  course  of  the  same 
parties  on  former  and  similar  occasions.  (To  T.  Raikcs, 
Esq.  Strathfieldsaye,  Jan,  4th,  1843  ) 

DEATH-BED  CON  VERSION  -. 

I  am  sorry  for  poor  Moutrond,  but  pleased  that  he 
died  a  Christian.  I  don't  believe  that  these  sudden 
death-bed  conversions  are  of  good  example;  but  it  is 
better  that  such  should  take  place  for  such  a  man  as 
he  was  rather  than  not  at  all.  They  produce  some 
effect  on  those  who  imitate  them,  and  the  few  who  ad- 
mire them.  I  don't  think  that  his  last  moments  were 
calculated  to  conciliate  the  generality  of  the  society  at 
Paris,  or  in  France,  who  rarely  think  seriously  upon 
any  subject.  (To  T.  Raikes,  Esq.  Wai  me  r  Castle, 
Oct.  23rd,  1843.) 

CHARITY  TO  ALL. 

We  must  make  the  most  of  men  as  we  find  them ; 
and  of  the  circumstances  of  the  times  in  which  we  live, 
and  do  our  best,  each  in  his  position,  to  protect  our 
country  and  the  world  from  the  evils  by  which  we  are 
threatened.  (To  T.  Raikes,  Esq.  London,  Nov.  18th, 
1843.) 

WONDERFUL  TIMES. 

We  are  living  in  wonderful  times.  The  spirit  of 
democracy  has  taken  a  start,  and  made  a  progress  every- 
where which  astounds  us ;  as  if  the  last  occasion  of 
what  we  witness  were  a  first  instance,  notwithstanding 
that  they  are  of  daily  occurrence  everywhere.  (To  T. 
Ruihcs,  Esq  Strathfieldsaye,  May  '27th,  1844.) 


i74  WORDS   OF    WELLINGTON. 


have  absolutely  no  detailed  record  of  the  sayings 
and  doings  of  Arthur  Wellesley  Duke  of  Welling- 
ton when  a  boy.  He  rarely  spoke  of  those  days 
himself,  and  never  with  pleasure.  He  went  when  quite 
young  to  a  preparatory  school  at  Chelsea,  where  hi.s  father, 
Lord  Wellesley,  called  to  see  him,  and  gave  him  a  shilling. 
From  Chelsea  he  was  removed  to  Eton,  where  history  is 
almost  silent  upon  the  subject  of  his  sayings  and  doings. 
Upon  the  death  of  Lord  Mornington,  after  a  while  Lord 
Wellesley  took  his  son  Arthur  to  Brussels,  where  he  was 
instructed  by  the  Avocat  Goubert,  whose  house  he  re- 
cognized after  Waterloo. 

ARTHUR  WESLEY  AT  ETON. 

Robert,  or  as  he  was  usually  called,  Bobus  Smith, 
brother  to  the  celebrated  Reverend  Sidney  Smith,  was 
one  day  bathing  in  the  Thames  when  Arthur  Wesk-v, 
not  then  Wellesley,  passed  by.  For  fun  Arthur  threw 
a  clod  at  the  bather,  and  Bobus  cried  out,  "  If  you  do 
that  again  I  will  get  out  and  thrash  you."  As  a  matter 
of  course  another  and  yet  another  clod  were  thrown, 
and  Bobus  landed,  and  without  waiting  to  dress,  struck 
the  first  blow.  A  sharp  battle  ensued,  which  ended  in 
favour  of  the  youth  who  certainly  had  not  moral  right 
on  his  side.  This,  however  simple  and  common-place, 
"  is  all  that  history  or  tradition  tells  us,"  says  the  Rev. 
G.  R.  Gleig,  "of  the  Eton  days  of  the  greatest  man 
whom  Eton  itself  has  ever  produced." 


A    LIEUTENANT.  175 

THE  DUKE  WITH  HIS  SONS. 

It  is  said  that  when  Wellington  took  down  his  sons 
to  enter  them  at  Eton,  he  pointed  out  a  particular 
tree,  upon  which  one  day  having  climbed  he  sat,  and 
"  seated  there  sketched  out  to  himself  the  whole  of  his 
future  career."  (7?eo.  G.  R.  Gleig,  who  thinks  that  the 
story  is  improbable.) 

LADY  DUNGANNON  HOAXED. 

Arthur  Wesley,  and  his  brothers  at  Eton  with  him, 
were  once  invited  to  spend  their  holidays  with  Lady 
Dungannon  in  Shropshire,  and,  full  of  fun,  they  deter- 
mined to  tell  her  ladyship  some  startling  piece  of  news, 
of  course  utterly  without  foundation.  They  informed 
her  that  their  sister  Anne  had  run  off  with  the  footman, 
begging  her  not  to  mention  the  circumstance  on  any 
account.  Her  gossipping  ladyship  suddenly  remem- 
bered a  visit  she  owed  to  Mrs.  Mytton,  a  neighbour  of 
hers,  to  whom  she  communicated  the  intelligence.  Re- 
turning, she  said,  to  the  boys,  to  their  overwhelming 
amusement,  "Ah,  my  dear  boys,  ill  news  travels  apace. 
Will  you  believe  it?  Mrs.  Mytton  knew  all  about  poor 
Anne." 

LIEUTENANT  WESLEY. 

On  21st  March,  1787,  Mr.  Wesley  was  made  an 
ensign;  on  the  '2oth  December,  a  lieutenant  of  the  41»t 
Foot,  lie  was  still  a  shy  awkward  lad  in  whom  the 
ladies  saw  nothing  to  admire.  At  a  ball  one  night  as 
Lady  Alborough  tells  the  story,  he  could  find  no 
partner,  and  inheriting  his  father's  taste  for  music,  he 
consoled  himself  by  sitting  down  near  the  band.  When 
the  party  broke  up,  and  the  other  officers  were  taken 


i?6  WORDS  OF   WELLINGTON. 

home  by  their  lady  friends,  young  Wesley  was  left  by 
common  consent  to  travel  with  the  fiddlers.  When  he 
had  become  a  great  man  Lady  Alborough  reminded  him 
of  the  circumstance,  adding  with  naivete,  "  We  should 
not  leave  you  to  go  home  with  the  fiddlers  now." 

A  SOLDIER'S  AVEIGHT. 

Shortly  after  Wesley  joined  his  first  regiment  as 
ensign,  he  caused  a  private  soldier  to  be  weighed,  first 
in  full  marching  order,  arms,  accoutrements,  ammu- 
nition, &c.,  and  afterwards  without  them.  "  I  wished," 
he  said,  "  to  have  some  measure  of  the  power  of  the 
individual  man  compared  with  the  weight  he  was  to 
carry,  and  the  work  he  was  expected  to  do.  I  was  not 
so  young  as  not  to  know  that  since  I  had  undertaken  a 
profession  I  had  better  endeavour  to  understand  it.  It 
must  always  be  kept  in  mind  that  the  power  of  the 
greatest  armies  depends  upon  what  the  individual  sol- 
dier is  capable  of  doing  and  bearing." 

SUPPOSING. 

In  the  Peninsula,  when  an  officer  of  rank  joined  the 
Duke,  he  was  asked  to  dine  at  head-quarters  on  the 
Duke's  right  hand.  Military  questions  were  not  gene- 
rally discussed,  but  on  one  occasion,  a  major-general 
so  perseveringly  questioned  the  Duke  as  to  his  critical 
position  at  the  time  that  the  Field-Marshal  condescended 
to  ask  him  his  opinion.  "  Supposing,"  said  the  Major- 
General,  "  the  French  moved  here,  and  there,  and  then 
there  (making  marks  upon  the  table-cloth),  which  they 
inevitably  would  do,  then  what  would  your  Grace  do?" 
"  Give  them  the  most  infernal  thrashing  they  have  had 
for  some  time,"  was  the  reply.  The  interlocutor,  it  is 
needless  to  add,  was  effectually  silenced. 


THE  DUKE'S   COOLNKss.  177 

A  BAD  EGG. 

Dining  on  the  morning  of  one  of  bis  battles  with  Lord 
Fitzroy  Somerset,  the  Duke  made  dreadfully  wry  faces 
while  eating  his  egg,  at  the  same  time  appearing  to  be 
absorbed  in  thought.  At  last,  apparently  recollecting 
himself,  he  said,  "  By  the  bye,  Fitzroy,  is  that  egg  of 
yours  fresh  ?  for  mine  was  quite  rotten." 

HOOKY-NOSE. 

During  the  siege  of  Burgos,  one  of  the  Irish  regiments 
displeased  Wellington  greatly  by  not  acting  with  neces- 
sary bravery ;  to  make  up  for  their  supposed  neglect, 
they  begged  permission  to  lead  the  assault  next  time. 
They  were  allowed  their  wish,  and  nearly  all  destroyed. 
Sir  Arthur  rode  up  to  a  heap  of  slain  and  wounded. 
Amongst  the  latter  was  a  man  who  had  had  both  legs 
shot  off,  who  saluted  his  commander  with  "  Arrah,  maybe 
ye'r  satisfied  now,  you  hooky-nosed  vagabond ! "  The 
general  smiled,  sent  a  surgeon,  and  the  audacious  Hiber- 
nian lived  to  become  an  inhabitant  of  Chelsea  Hospital. 

NEVER  GIVE  UP. 

Finding  a  difficulty  in  laying  down  a  bridge  across  the 
Garonne,  and  being  informed  that  "  until  the  river  fell 
a  passage  could  not  be  effected,"  Lord  Wellington  in- 
stantly observed,  "If  it  will  not  do  one  way,  we  must  try 
another ;  for  I  never  in  my  life  gave  up  anything  that  I 
once  undertook." 

THE  DUKE'S  COOLNESS. 

While  the  Duke  of  Wellington  was  standing  in  the 
centre  of  the  high  road  in  front  of  St.  Jean,  several 
guns  were  levelled  against  him,  distinguished  as  he  was 

H 


178  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

by  his  suite  and  the  brilliant  staff  who  conveyed  his  des- 
patches to  and  fro.  The  bullets  repeatedly  grazed  a  tree 
near  him,  when  he  observed  to  one  of  his  staff,  "  That's 
good  practice ;  I  think  they  fire  better  than  in  Spain." 
Riding  up  to  the  95th  regiment  when  in  front  of  the 
line,  and  expecting  a  formidable  charge  of  cavalry,  he 
said,  "  Stand  fast,  95th ;  we  must  not  be  beaten.  What 
will  they  say  in  England?"  On  another  occasion, 
when  the  result  of  the  battle  seemed  to  be  very  doubt- 
ful, and  some  of  his  best  and  bravest  men  had  fallen, 
he  said  coolly,  "  Never  mind ;  we'll  win  this  battle  yet." 
To  a  regiment  in  a  close  engagement,  he  used  a  sporting 
phrase :  "  Hard  pounding,  this,  gentlemen ;  let's  see 
who  will  pound  the  longest." — Anecdotes  of  Waterloo 
(1850). 

AFTER  WATERLOO. 

On  the  morning  of  the  19th  of  June,  Dr.  Hume 
entered  the  Duke's  chamber  to  make  his  report  of  the 
killed  and  wounded.  He  found  the  Duke  asleep,  un- 
shaved  and  unwashed,  as  he  had  lain  down  late  over 
night.  The  duty  being  urgent,  Hume  awoke  his  chief, 
and  the  Duke  sitting  up  in  his  bed,  desired  him  without 
asking  any  questions  to  read.  It  was  a  long  list,  and 
took  a  eood  while  to  go  through ;  but  after  he  had  read 
for  about  an  hour  the  doctor  looked  up.  He  saw 
Wellington  with  hands  convulsively  clasped  together, 
and  the  tears  making  long  furrows  on  his  battle-soiled 
cheeks.  At  first  the  Duke  did  not  notice  that  Hume 
had  ceased  to  speak,  but  in  about  a  minute  he  cried, 
"  Go  on,"  and  till  the  reading  was  closed,  he  never  once 
moved  from  his  attitude  of  profound  grief. 


A  LIFE  SAVED.  179 

THE  IRON  DIKE. 

Great  misapprehension  prevails,  both  at  home  and 
abroad,  concerning  the  origin  of  this  sobriquet.  The 
fact  is  it  arose  out  of  the  building  of  an  iron  steamboat 
which  plied  between  Liverpool  and  Dublin,  and  which 
its  owners  called  the  ''  Duke  of  Wellington."  The  term 
Iron  Duke  was  first  applied  to  the  vessel ;  and  by-and- 
by,  rather  in  jest  than  in  earnest,  it  was  transferred  to 
the  Duke  himself.  It  had  no  reference  whatever,  cer- 
tainly at  the  outset,  to  any  peculiarities  or  assumed 
peculiarities  in  the  Duke's  disposition. 

A  LACONIC  REPLY. 

During  the  Peel  Administration,  an  important  situa- 
tion in  Ireland  became  vacant,  to  which  an  Irish  relative 
of  the  Duke's  wished  to  be  appointed.  He  therefore 
wrote  to  his  Grace,  and  after  having  stated  his  wish,  con- 
cluded his  letter  with  these  words :  "  One  word  from 
your  Grace  will  be  sufficient."  The  Duke's  reply  was 

laconic  and  characteristic  :   "  Dear ,  Not  one  word. 

— From  yours  affectionately,  Wellington."  —  The  Life  of 
Wellington  (1850). 

A  LIFE  SAVED. 

While  the  allied  troops  were  in  Paris,  a  French  citizen, 
passing  through  the  Champs  Elysees,  where  the  troops 
were  encamped,  was  robbed  of  his  watch  by  a  British 
sergeant.  A  court-martial  was  held  upon  the  criminal, 
who  was  sentenced  to  die  on  the  following  morning.  All 
the  soldiers  acknowledged  the  justice  of  the  decree;  the 
drums  beat  at  the  appointed  time,  the  black  ting  waved 
mournfully  in  the  air,  the  ministers  of  justice  had 
already  raised  the  engines  of  destruction,  and  the  fatal 


i8o  WORDS    OF    WELLINGTON. 

word  "Fire!"  was  almost  half  ejaculated,  when  the 
Duke  rushed  before  the  firelocks,  and  commanded  a 
momentary  pause,  whilst  he  addressed  the  prisoner : 
"  You  have  offended  against  the  laws  of  God,  of  honour, 
and  of  virtue.  The  grave  is  open  before  you.  In  a  few 
short  moments  your  soul  will  appear  before  its  Maker. 
Your  prosecutor  complains  of  the  sentence — the  man 
whom  you  have  robbed  would  plead  for  your  life,  and 
is  horrorstruck  with  the  rapidity  of  your  judgment. 
You  are  a  soldier ;  you  have  been  brave,  and,  as  report 
say.s,  until  now,  even  virtuous.  Speak  boldly ;  in  the 
face  of  heaven,  and  as  the  soldier  of  an  army  devoted  to 
virtue  and  good  order,  declare  now  your  feelings  as  to 
your  sentence."  "  General,"  said  the  man,  "  retire,  and 
let  my  comrades  do  their  duty.  When  a  soldier  forgets 
his  honour  life  becomes  disgraceful ;  and  immediate 
punishment  is  due  as  an  example  to  the  army.  Fire  !" 
"  You  have  spoken  nobly,"  said  the  Duke,  with  a  tear  in 
his  eye.  "  You  have  saved  your  life.  How  can  I  de- 
stroy a  repentant  sinner,  whose  words  are  of  greater 
value  to  the  army  than  his  death  would  be  ?  Soldiers, 
bear  this  in  mind,  and  may  a  sense  of  honour  always 
deter  you  from  infamy."  The  troops  filled  the  air 
with  their  shouts.  The  criminal  fell  at  the  Duke's  feet. 
The  word  "  March  !"  was  given  ;  he  arose,  and  returned 
alive  in  those  ranks  which  were  to  have  witnessed  his 
execution. —  The  Life  of  Wellington  (1850). 

WELLINGTON  AND  NELSON. 

"  I  had  an  engagement  with  Lord  Bathurst,"  the 
Duke  would  say,  "  and  found  in  his  waiting-room  a 
gentleman  who  had  lost  an  eye  and  an  arm.  We  en- 
tered into  conversation,  neither  of  us  being  at  all  aware 
of  who  the  other  might  be,  and  I  was  struck  with  the 


MR.    PITT.  is  i 

clearness  and  decision  of  his  language,  and  guessed  from 
the  topics  which  he  selected  that  he  must  be  a  seaman. 
He  was  called  in  first  and  had  his  interview  ;  I  followed, 
and  after  settling  our  business,  Lord  Bathurst  asked  me 
if  I  knew  who  had  preceded  me.  I  said  '  No,'  but  I 
was  pretty  sure  that  he  was  no  common  man.  '  You  are 
quite  right,'  was  Lord  Bathurst's  answer,  '  and  let  me 
add  that  he  expressed  exactly  the  same  opinions  of  you. 
That  was  Lord  Nelson.'  "  He  was  then  making  his  pre- 
parations for  going  on  board  the  "Victory,"  and  counted 
on  fighting  the  battle  in  which  he  died. 

ME.  PITT. 

"  I  did  not  think,"  said  the  Duke,  "  that  Pitt  would 
have  died  so  soon.  He  died  in  January,  1806,  and  I 
met  him  at  Lord  Camden's  in  Kent,  and  I  think  that  he 
did  not  seem  ill,  in  the  November  previous.  He  was 
very  lively,  and  in  good  spirits.  It  is  true  he  was  by 
way  of  being  an  invalid  at  that  time.  A  great  deal  was 
always  said  about  his  taking  his  rides,  for  he  used  then 
to  ride  eighteen  or  twenty  miles  a  day,  and  great  pains 
were  taken  to  send  forward  his  luncheon,  bottled  por- 
ter, I  think,  and  getting  him  a  beef-steak  or  mutton- 
chop  ready  at  some  place  fixed  beforehand.  That 
place  was  always  mentioned  to  the  party ;  so  that  those 
kept  at  home  in  the  morning  might  join  the  ride  there 
if  they  pleased.  On  coming  home  from  those  rides 
they  used  to  put  on  dry  clothes  and  to  hold  a  cabinet, 
for  all  the  party  were  members  of  the  Cabinet,  except 
me  and,  I  think,  the  Duke  of  Montrose.  At  dinner, 
Mr.  Pitt  drank  little  wine  ;  but  nt  was  at  that  time  the 
fashion  to  sup,  and  he  then  took  a  great  deal  of  port  and 
water. 

"  In  the  same  month  I  also  met  Mr.  Pitt  at  the  Lord 


1 82  WOEDS   OF   WELLINGTON. 

Mayor's  dinner  ;  he  did  not  seem  ill.  On  that  occasion 
I  remember  he  returned  thanks  in  one  of  the  best  and 
neatest  speeches  I  ever  heard  in  my  life.  It  was  in  a 
very  few  words.  The  Lord  Mayor  had  proposed  his 
health  as  one  who  had  been  the  saviour  of  England, 
and  would  be  the  saviour  of  the  rest  of  Europe.  Mr. 
Pitt,  then  got  up,  disclaimed  the  compliment  as  ap- 
plied to  himself,  and  added,  'England  has  saved  herself 
by  her  exertions,  and  the  rest  of  Europe  will  be  saved 
by  her  example ;'  that,  was  all ;  he  was  scarcely  up  two 
minutes,  yet  nothing  could  be  more  perfect. 

"  I  remember  another  curious  thing  at  that  dinner. 
Er*kine  was  there.  Now  Mr.  Pitt  had  always  over 
Erskine  a  great  ascendancy,  the  ascendancy  of  terror. 
Sometimes  in  the  House  of  Commons,  he  could  keep 
Erskine  in  check  by  merely  putting  out  his  hand,  or 
making  a  note.  At  this  dinner  Erskine's  health  having 
been  drunk,  and  Erskine  rising  to  return  thanks,  Pitt  held 
up  his  finger  and  said  to  him  across  the  table,  'Erskine, 
remember  that  they  are  drinking  your  health  as  a  dis- 
tinguished colonel  of  volunteers.'  Erskine,  who  had  in- 
tended, as  we  heard,  to  go  off  upon  rights  of  juries,  the 
state  trials,  and  other  political  points,  was  quite  put  out ; 
he  was  awed  like  a  school-boy  at  school,  and  in  his 
speech  kept  strictly  within  the  limits  enjoined  him. 

BLUCHEK. 

"  I  should  not,"  said  Wellington,  "  do  justice  to  my 
own  feelings,  or  to  Marshal  Blucher  and  the  Prussian 
army,  if  I  did  not  attribute  the  successful  result  of  this 
arduous  day  to  the  cordial  and  timely  assistance  I  re- 
ceived from  them.  The  operation  of  General  Bulow 
upon  the  enemy's  flank  was  a  most  decisive  one ;  and 
even  if  I  had  not  found  myself  in  a  situation  to  make  the 


FOREIGN  EN1.1STMKXT  ACT.  183 

attack  which  produced  the  final  result,  it  would  have 
forced  the  enemy  to  retire  if  his  attacks  should  have 
failed,  and  would  have  prevented  him  from  taking  ad- 
vantage of  them  if  they  should  unfortunately  have  suc- 
ceeded." 

VIMIERO. 

The  lame  conclusion  to  the  battle  of  Vimiero  might 
have  been  avoided  if  Sir  Arthur  Wellesley's  advice  had 
been  taken  ;  but  Sir  Harry  Burrard  would  not  be  inter- 
fered with  ;  and  Sir  Arthur,  whose  sense  of  military 
obedience  would  not  allow  him  to  interfere  and  act 
upon  his  own  inferior  judgment,  turned  to  one  of  his 
officers  and  said,  "  Well,  then,  we  have  nothing  to  do 
but  to  go  and  shoot  red-legged  partridges." 

Louis  GOUBERT. 

John  Armitage,  who  had  lived  with  Lady  Morn- 
ington  at  Brussels,  and  been  educated  with  her  son 
Arthur,  by  Louis  Goubert,  met  the  Duke  in  1827  on 
the  grand-stand  at  a  race,  when  the  Duke  told  him 
this  anecdote,  "  As  I  rode  into  Brussels  the  day  after 
the  battle  of  Waterloo,  I  passed  the  house  of  Louis 
Goubert  and  recognised  it,  and  pulling  up,  ascertained 
that  the  old  man  was  still  alive.  I  sent  for  him,  and 
recalling  myself  to  his  recollection,  shook  hands  with 
him,  and  assured  him  that,  for  old  acquaintance1  sake, 
he  should  be  protected  from  all  molestation." 

FOREIGN  ENLISTMENT  ACT. 

"  The  strongest  suspicion,"  said  Wellington,  "  that  a 
vessel  building  in  the  ports  of  this  country,  or  about  to 
proceed  to  sea,  is  destined  to  be  armed  elsewhere,  and  to 
become  a  vessel  of  war  in  the  service  of  a  belligerent;  the 


1 84  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

strongest  suspicion  that  a  particular  cargo  of  arms  sailing 
from  the  ports  of  this  country  is  destined  for  the  purpose 
of  arming  that  very  vessel  in  a  foreign  port,  would  not 
justify  the  Government  either  in  detaining  the  vessel  or 
iu  seizing  the  arms,  the  vessel  herself  sailing  unarmed, 
and  the  cargo  of  arms  being  entered  at  the  Custom 
House  as  merchandise.  The  law  applies  only  to  what 
can  be  proved." 

THE    H.4LT    AT    WlLNA. 

"Napoleon  must  be  supposed  to  have  made  up  his 
mind  as  to  what  his  object  was  in  the  war,  and  that  this 
object  was  Moscow.  He  might  then  with  safety  have 
left  his  wings  to  pursue  the  enemy  opposed  to  them  re- 
spectively ;  and  he  might  himself,  with  the  Guards  and 
the  4th  Corps,  have  moved  direct  upon  Vitepsk  from 
Wilna,  or  upon  Rudnia  or  even  upon  Smolensk.  He 
ought  to  have  made  this  movement  as  soon  as  possible 

after  his  arrival  at  Wilna He  would  have  found 

himself  at  Vitepsk  on  the  20th  of  July,  leaving  Wilna  as 
late  as  the  4th  of  July,  with  above  120,000  men  between 
the  two  armies  of  the  enemy,  with  no  force  in  his  front, 
with  all  their  lines  of  communication  at  his  mercy,  and 
with  a  superior  army  following  each  of  theirs." 

THE  GREEK  INSURRECTION. 

"  The  Greek  insurrection  would  certainly  have  oc- 
curred at  some  time  or  other  ;  but  its  occurrence  was 
accelerated  for  the  purpose  of  giving  matter  of  dispute 
to  the  two  Imperial  Courts,  and  of  thus  breaking  up 
what  is  called  the  Holy  Alliance.  The  insurrection 
was  accelerated  by  those  who  also  occasioned  the  Nea- 
politan and  particularly  the  Piedmontese  revolutions. 
.  .  .  My  firm  belief  is  that  the  Emperor  wishes  for 


ROUTIXH.  185 

peace.  ...  I  cannot  understand  the  meaning  of  the 
benefit  which  we  are  to  derive  from  the  establishment  in 
the  Mediterranean  of  an  efficient  naval  power  which  is 
likewise  Continental.  Is  there,  or  can  there  be,  any 
naval  power  that  is  not  jealous  of  and  inimical  to  us  ? 
Can  naval  affairs  in  the  Mediterranean  be  better  for  us 
than  they  are  ?  .  .  .  .  It  is  certainly  true  that  the  Em- 
peror will  not  interfere  by  force  in  favour  of  the  Greeks." 

DEBT. 

The  Duke  of  Wellington  kept  an  accurate  detailed 
account  of  all  the  moneys  received  and  expended  by 
him.  "I  make  a  point,"  said  he  to  Mr.  Gleig,  "of 
paying  my  own  bills,  and  I  advise  every  one  to  do  the 
same  ;  formerly  I  used  to  trust  a  confidential  servant  to 
pay  them,  but  I  was  cured  of  that  folly  by  receiving 
one  morning,  to  my  great  surprise,  duns  of  a  year  or 
two's  standing.  The  fellow  had  speculated  with  my 
money,  and  left  my  bills  unpaid."  Talking  of  debt,  his 
remark  was,  "  It  makes  a  slave  of  a  man.  I  have  often 
known  what  it  was  to  be  in  want  of  money,  but  I  never 
got  into  debt."  (From  Self-Help,  by  Mr.  Smiles.) 


The  Duke  of  Wellington  was  a  great  routinist,  be- 
cause he  was  a  first-rate  man  of  business.  He  possessed 
in  perfection  all  the  qualities  which  constitute  one.  He 
was  a  most  punctual  man;  he  never  received  a  letter 
without  acknowledging  or  replying  to  it  ;  and  he  habi- 
tually attended  to  the  minutest  details  of  all  matters 
entrusted  to  him,  whether  civil  or  military.  His  busi- 
ness faculty  was  his  genius,  the  genius  of  common  -sense; 
and  it  is  not  perhaps  saying  too  much  to  aver,  that  it 


186  WORDS  OF   WELLINGTON. 

was  because  he  was  a  first-rate  man  of  business  that  he 
never  lost  a  battle.  .   .  . 

"  The  regiment  of  Colonel  Wellesley,"  General  Harris 
wrote  in  1799,  "is  a  model  regiment ;  on  the  score  of 
soldierly  bearing,  discipline,  instruction  and  orderly  be- 
haviour, it  is  beyond  all  praise."  (From  Self- Help,  by 
Mr.  Smiles.) 

DEVELOPMENT. 

"The  Duke's  talents,"  says  a  writer  in  the  "Edin- 
burgh Review"  of  July  1859,  "  seeni  never  to  have 
developed  themselves  until  some  active  and  practical 
field  for  their  display  was  placed  immediately  before  him. 
He  was  long  described  by  his  Spartan  mother,  who 
thought  him  a  dunce,  as  only  '  food  for  powder.'  He 
gained  no  sort  of  distinction  either  at  Eton  or  at  the 
French  Military  College  of  Angers.'' 

A  TESTIMONIAL  DECLINED. 

The  Marquis  Wellesley,  on  one  occasion,  positively 
refused  a  present  of  £100,OuO  proposed  to  be  given  him 
by  the  Directors  of  the  East  India  Company  on  the  con- 
quest of  Mysore.  "  It  is  not  necessary,"  said  he,  "  for 
me  to  allude  to  the  independence  of  my  character,  and 
the  proper  dignity  attaching  to  my  office,  other  reasons 
besides  these  important  considerations  lead  me  to  decline 
this  testimony  which  is  not  suitable  to  me.  /  think  of 
nothing  but  our  army.  I  should  be  much  distressed  to 
curtail  the  share  of  those  brave  soldiers."  (From  Self- 
Help,  by  Mr.  Smiles.) 

EULOGY  OF  PEEL. 

"  Your  Lordships,"  said  the  Duke  of  Wellington  in 
the  House  of  Lords  a  few  days  after  Sir  Robert  Peel's 
death,  "must  all  feel  the  high  and  honourable  character 


BATTLE    OF    WATERLOO.  187 

of  the  late  Sir  Robert  Peel.  I  was  long  connected  with 
him  in  public  life.  We  were  both  in  the  counsels  of 
our  Sovereign  together,  and  I  had  long  the  honour  to 
enjoy  his  private  friendship.  In  all  tlie  course  of  my 
acquaintance  with  him  I  never  knew  a  man  in  whose 
truth  and  justice  I  had  greater  confidence,  or  in  whom 
I  saw  a  more  invariable  desire  to  promote  the  public 
service.  In  the  whole  course  of  my  communication 
with  him  I  never  knew  an  instance  in  which  he  did  not 
show  the  strongest  attachment  to  truth ;  and  I  never 
saw  in  the  whole  course  of  my  life  the  smallest  reason 
for  suspecting  that  he  stated  anything  which  he  did  not 
firmly  believe  to  be  the  fact." 

THE  WORD  OF  HONOUR. 

"  When  English  officers,"  the  Duke  of  Wellington 
wrote  to  Kellerman,  when  that  general  was  opposed  to 
him  in  the  Peninsula,  "  have  given  their  parole  of 
honour  not  to  escape,  be  sure  they  will  not  break  it. 
Believe  me,  trust  to  their  word;  the  word  of  an  English 
officer  is  a  surer  guarantee  than  the  vigilance  of  sen- 
tinels." 

THE  BATTLE  OF  WATERLOO. 

According  to  Alison,  the  battle  of  Waterloo  was 
fought  by  80,000  French,  and  250  guns,  against  67,000 
English,  Hanoverians,  Belgians,  &c.,  with  156  guns,  to 
which  were  subsequently  added  certain  large  bodies  of 
Prussians,  who  came  in  time  to  assist  in  gaining  the  day. 
There  were  strictly  but  22,000  British  troops  on  the 
field,  of  whom  the  total  number  killed  was  1417,  and 
wounded  4923.  The  total  loss  of  the  allied  forces  on 
that  bloody  day  was  22,378,  of  whom  there  were  killed 
4172.  When  William  TV.  was  Iving  on  his  deathbed  at 


i88  WORDS   OF    WELLINGTON. 

Windsor,  the  firing  for  the  anniversary  of  Waterloo 
took  place,  and  on  his  inquiring  and  learning  the  cause, 
he  breathed  out  faintly,"  It  was  a  great  day  for  England." 

WELLINGTON  AND  THE  WORD  "  GLORY." 

"  Our  own  Wellington,"  says  a  recent  writer,  "  was  a 
far  greater  man  than  Napoleon.  Not  less  resolute,  firm, 
and  persistent,  but  much  more  self-denying,  conscien- 
tious, and  truly  patriotic.  Napoleon's  aim  was  'glory;' 
Wellington's  watchword,  like  Nelson's,  was  '  duty.' 
The  former  word,  it  is  said,  does  not  once  occur  in  his 
despatches;*  the  latter  often,  but  never  accompanied 
by  any  high-sounding  professions.  The  greatest  diffi- 
culties could  neither  embarrass  nor  intimidate  Welling- 
ton ;  his  energy  invariably  rising  in  proportion  to  the 
obstacles  to  be  surmounted.  The  patience,  the  firmness, 
the  resolution  with  which  he  bore  through  the  madden- 
ing vexations  and  gigantic  difficulties  of  the  Peninsula 
campaigns,  is  perhaps  one  of  the  sublimest  things  to  be 
found  in  history.  In  Spain,  Wellington  not  only  ex- 
hibited the  genius  of  the  general,  but  the  comprehensive 
wisdom  of  the  statesman.  Though  his  natural  temper 
was  irritable  in  the  extreme,  his  high  sense  of  duty 
enabled  him  to  restrain  it,  and  to  those  about  him,  his 
patience  seemed  absolutely  inexhaustible.  His  great 
character  stands  untarnished  by  ambition,  by  avarice, 
or  any  low  passion.  Though  a  man  of  powerful  indivi- 
duality, he  yet  displayed  a  great  variety  of  endowment. 
The  equal  of  Napoleon  in  generalship,  he  was  as  prompt, 

*  This  is  a  mistake:  we  give  one  example  of  his  using  the 
word  in  a  despatch  to  Col.  Malcolm  (3rd  December,  1809), 
showing  that  he  by  no  means  despised,  but  looked  upon  it,  at 
least  in  the  one  instance  under  consideration,  as  "a  solid  and 
substantial  benefit." 


DINNER    AT    WATERLOO.  189 

vigorous  and  during  as  Clive  ;  as  wise  a  statesman  as 
Cromwell;  and  as  pure  and  high-minded  as  Washington. 
The  great  Wellington  left  behind  him  an  enduring 
reputation,  founded  on  toilsome  campaigns  won  by 
skilful  combination,  by  fortitude  which  nothing  could 
exhaust,  by  sublime  daring,  and  perhaps  still  sublimer 
patience." 

CHECKED  AT  BURGOS. 

I  once  asked  him  whether  in  the  case  of  Burgos,  the 
government  at  home  had  been  to  blame  for  that  insuffi- 
ciency. "  Not  in  the  least,"  was  the  reply.  "  It  was  all 
my  own  fault.  The  place  was  very  like  a  hill-fort  in 
India.  I  had  got  into  a  good  many  of  these,  and  I 
thought  I  could  get  into  this.  The  French,  however, 
had  a  devilish  clever  fellow  there,  one  Le  Breton,  and 
he  fairly  kept  me  out.  He  met  me  at  every  point  with 
great  spirit  and  resource.  He  knocked  about  the  few 
guns  I  had,  and  at  last  I  took  to  mining — not  a  bad 
way  either ;  but,  before  I  could  manage  it,  the  enemy 
collected  in  force,  and  I  was  obliged  to  retire.  "  It  is 
odd  enough,"  he  added,  "  that  the  same  men  who  had 
defended  the  place  so  well,  evacuated  it  in  such  a  hurry 
the  following  year  when  I  advanced  on  Vittoria,  that  in 
destroying  the  defences  they  blew  up  a  whole  battalion 
of  their  own  people." — Lord  Ellesmere. 

DINNER  AT  WATERLOO. 

It  is  stated  that  the  Duke  of  Wellington's  cook,  named 
Thornton,  was  employed  all  day  in  the  little  inn  at 
Waterloo,  in  preparing  the  Duke's  dinner,  and  was  fre- 
quently advised,  and  even  importuned  by  the  wounded 
and  the  runaways,  to  make  his  escape  with  the  plate  and 
batterie  de  cuisine,  but  worthy  in  his  way  of  such  a 


190  WORDS    OF    WELLINGTON. 

master,  he  answered  quietly,  "  I  have  had  the  honour 
of  serving  his  Grace  these  six  years,  and  I  never  yet 
knew  him  to  miss  a  dinner  he  had  ordered,  and  I  don't 
think  he  will  to-day."  When  the  Duke  returned  to  eat 
the  dinner  which  his  confiding  cook  had  prepared  for 
him,  the  first  person  he  saw  in  the  room  was  the  illus- 
trious Cambronne  (the  reputed  author  of  the  phrase 
La  garde  meurt  et  ne  se  rend  pas).  This  good  fellow  had 
very  quietly  surrendered  himself  to  a  drummer,  and  had 
the  modesty  to  think  that  he  might  invite  himself  to  the 
Conqueror's  table.  The  Duke,  however,  declined  that 
honour  (with  others  not  less  courteously  suggested)  on 
the  plea  of  not  knowing  how  far  it  might  be  agreeable 
to  his  Sovereign's  ally,  the  King  of  France. — Quarterly 
Review,  vol.  xc. 

THE  BEATEN  GENERALS. 

Before  Wellington  had  an  opportunity  of  measuring 
himself  with  Buonaparte  in  person,  he  had  beaten  in 
succession  all  his  most  eminent  Marshals  and  Lieute- 
nants : — Junot  at  Rolica  and  Vimiero;  Victor,  at  Tala- 
vera ;  Massena,  at  Busaco  and  Fuentes  d'Onor ;  Ney, 
during  the  whole  pursuit  after  Torres  Vedras  and  at 
Quatre  Bras ;  Marmont,  at  Salamanca ;  Jourdain,  at 
Vittoria ;  Soult,  everywhere — through  Portugal,  Spain, 
France,  Flanders — from  Oporto  to  Waterloo. — Quarterly 
Review,  vol.  xc. 

CAPTURED  GINS. 

I  asked  the  Duke  if  he  could  form  any  calculation  of 
the  number  of  guns  he  had  taken  in  the  course  of  his 
career.  "  No,"  he  replied,  "  not  with  any  accuracy, 
somewhere  about  3,000,  I  should  guess.  At  Oporto, 
after  the  passage  of  the  Douro,  I  took  the  entire  siege 


WELLINGTON   AS   A    STATESMAN.        191 

train  of  the  enemy ;  at  Vittoria  and  Waterloo  I  took 
every  gun  which  they  had  in  the  field.  What  however 
is  more  extraordinary,  I  don  t  think  I  ever  lout  a  gun  in  tin' 
field.  After  the  battle  of  Salamanca,"  he  went  on  to 
explain,  "  three  of  my  guns  attached  to  some  Portuguese 
cavalry  were  captured  in  a  trifling  affair  near  [Madrid, 
but  they  were  recovered  the  next  day.  In  the  Pyrenees 
Lord  Hill  found  himself  obliged  to  throw  eight  or  nine 
guns  over  a  precipice  ;  but  these  also  were  recovered, 
and  never  fell  into  the  enemy's  hands  at  all." — Lord 
EUesmcre. 

THE  GREATEST  SOLDIER  IN  THE  WORLD. 

I  once  asked  the  Duke  (Wellington)  whom  he  con- 
sidered on  the  whole  the  greatest  soldier  on  record.  I 
believe  others  have  asked  the  same  question  of  him  and 
received  the  same  reply — "  Hannibal." — Lord  Ellen- 
mere. 

WELLINGTON  AS  A  STATESMAN. 

The  appearance  of  the  soldier-senator  in  Parliament 
has  been  thus  described  by  an  eye-witness : — "  The 
Duke  of  Wellington — the  Nestor  of  the  Peerage — re- 
ceives more  homage  on  his  way  to  the  House,  and  has 
more  sway  in  it,  than  any  other  man  of  the  age.  Seated 
at  the  corner  of  the  leading  ministerial  bench,  on  the 
right  of  the  Chancellor,  he  is  generally  engaged  reading 
letters  or  other  documents,  many  of  which  he  frequently 
tears  to  pieces,  and  strews  the  fragments  round  him. 
At  other  times  he  sits  with  his  arms  folded  and  his  hat 
drawn  low  over  his  forehead ;  he  seems  to  take  little 
heed  of  the  debates,  and  rarely  takes  notes;  but  he  is 
always  on  the  alert,  and  whenever  he  rises  he  breaks  the 
respectful  silence  which  immediately  ensues,  only  to 


igz  WORDS    OF    WELLINGTON. 

state  more  briefly,  more  tersely,  and  more  forcibly  than 
any  preceding  member,  the  points  which  he  wishes  to 
urge.  He  mostly  holds  his  hat  in  his  hands,  and  allows 
it  but  little  quiet. 

"  His  voice  betrays  that  he  is  in  the  sear  and  yellow 
leaf;  and  whilst  his  mind  seems  as  active  as  ever,  it  is 
too  evident  that  the  sword  outwears  the  scabbard." 

THE  WORD  or  COMMAND. 

I  sometimes  fear  the  Duke  of  Wellington  is  too  much 
disposed  to  imagine  that  he  can  govern  a  great  nation 
by  word  of  command  in  the  same  way  in  which  he 
governed  a  highly  disciplined  army.  He  seems  to  be 
unaccustomed  to,  and  to  despise  the  inconsistencies,  the 
weaknesses,  the  bursts  of  heroism,  followed  by  prostra- 
tion and  cowardice,  which  invariably  characterise  all 
popular  efforts.  He  forgets  that  after  all  it  is  from  such 
efforts  that  all  the  great  and  noble  institutions  of  the 
world  have  come  ;  and  that  on  the  other  hand,  the  dis- 
cipline and  organization  of  armies  have  been  only  like 
the  flight  of  the  cannon-ball,  the  object  of  which  is  de- 
struction. —  Coleridge's  Table  Talk. 


TOO  MUCH  SMOKE. 

The  Duke  of  Wellington  bought  one  of  Sir  William 
Allan's  pictures  of  the  Battle  of  Waterloo,  remarking 
that  it  was  "  Good,  very  good  !  not  too  much  smoke  !  " 
The  artist  was  requested  to  call  at  the  Horse  Guards  on 
a  day  appointed  to  receive  payment.  Sir  William  met 
his  Grace  punctually  and  suggested  that  to  save  his  in- 
valuable time  he  should  give  him  a  cheque  on  his 
bankers  for  the  amount  instead  of  counting  out  notes 
and  gold.  The  first  suggestion  passed  unheeded,  and 
the  artist,  thinking  he  had  not  been  heard,  repeated  it. 


THE  DUKE'S   COAT.  193 

The  Duke  turned  round  rather  sharply  and  said,  "  Do 
you  suppose  I  would  allow  Coutts's  people  to  know  what 
a  fool  I  had  been  ?" 

THE  DUKE'S  COAT. 

In  1845  the  Duke  called  at  Nicoll's  for  a  paletot, 
which  was  then  something  new.  The  instant  he  arrived 
he  said,  "  I  have  seen  the  Prince  [Prince  Albert]  wear 
one  of  your  new  kind  of  coats."  The  chief  puzzle  was 
how  to  get  pockets  enough  for  the  great  man.  Two  of 
them  were  like  the  hare  pockets  of  a  shooting  coat.  His 
request  was  that  the  said  pockets  might  be  long  and 
strong.  When  he  was  told  that  so  many  pockets  de- 
stroyed the  lightness  of  the  coat,  he  said,  "  It  is  my  wish 
— it  is  my  wish." 

HABITS  OF  LIFE. 

Wellington  was  an  early  riser,  simple  in  his  habits, 
temperate  in  his  diet,  and  abstemious  to  the  greatest 
degree ;  for  although  he  lived  at  a  period  when  drinking 
wa.s  one  of  the  grossest  vices  of  the  day,  he  was  never 
once  known  to  be  guilty  of  any  excess.  He  was  strictly 
attentive  to  his  person ;  neat  in  his  dress,  but  never 
appeared  in  gaudy  apparel.  Had  he  worn  a  tenth  part 
of  those  well-earned  honours,  which  his  valorous  deeds 
had  gained  for  him,  his  breast  would  have  sparkled  with 
brilliants.  The  badge  of  the  patron  Saint  of  England, 
the  ribbon  of  the  Golden  Fleece  of  Spain,  and  the  un- 
pretending silver  medal,  bearing  the  inscription  of 
Waterloo,  were  the  only  decorations  he  was  usually  in 
the  habit  of  wearing. — Three  years  with  the  Duke,  or 
Wellington  in  Private  Life. 


194  WORDS    OF   WELLINGTON. 

CHARACTERISTICS. 

Important  characteristic  points  in  the  character  of 
the  Duke  of  Wellington  : — 

1st.  His  confidence  in  himself,  and  buoyancy  under 
personal  responsibility. 

2nd.  His  forbearance  and  forgiveness  of  injustice. 

3rd.  His  firmness  under  home  and  foreign  annoy- 
ances. 

4th.  His  natural  feelings  of  secrecy  and  caution. 

5th.  His  disinterestedness  as  to  money  or  rank,  and 
his  general  candour  and  simplicity  of  character. 

6th.  His  placability  as  to  the  faults  and  failings  of 
others,  evinced  by  his  feelings  connected  with  subordi- 
nation and  courts-martial. — Introduction  to  Characteris- 
tics of  the  Duke  of  Wellington.  By  Earl  de  Grey  (1853). 

TITLES  AND  HONOURS. 

The  Duke  of  Wellington's  titles  and  honours  at  his 
death  are  thus  paraded  by  the  Herald's  College : — 
Arthur  Wellesley,  the  Most  High,  Mighty,  and  Most 
Noble  Prince,  Duke  of  Wellington,  Marquis  of  Welling- 
ton, Marquis  of  Douro,  Earl  of  Wellington  in  Somerset, 
Viscount  Wellington  of  Talavera,  Baron  Douro  of  Wel- 
lesley, Prince  of  Waterloo  in  the  Netherlands,  Duke  of 
Ciudad  Rodrigo  in  Spain,  Duke  of  Brunoy  in  France, 
Duke  of  Vittoria,  Marquis  of  Torres  Vedras,  Count  of 
Vimiero  in  Portugal,  a  Grandee  of  the  First  Class  in 
Spain,  a  Privy  Councillor,  Commander-in-Chief  of  the 
British  Army,  Colonel  of  the  Grenadier  Guards,  Colonel 
of  the  Rifle  Brigade,  a  Field-Marshal  of  Great  Britain, 
a  Marshal  of  Russia^  a  Marshal  of  Austria,  a  Marshal  of 
France,  a  Marshal  of  Prussia,  a  Marshal  of  Spain,  a 
Marshal  of  Portugal,  a  Marshal  of  the  Netherlands,  a 


TITLES  AXD  HONOURS.  195 

Knight  of  the  Garter,  a  Knight  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  a 
Knight  of  the  Golden  Fleece,  a  Knight  Grand  Cross  of 
the  Bath,  a  Knight  Grand  Cross  of  Hanover,  a  Knight 
of  the  Black  Eagle,  a  Knight  of  the  Tower  and  Sword, 
a  Knight  of  St.  Fernando,  a  Knight  of  William  of  the 
Low  Countries,  a  Knight  of  Charles  III.,  a  Knight  of 
the  Sword  of  Sweden,  a  Knight  of  St.  Andrew  of  Russia, 
a  Knight  of  the  Annunciado  of  Sardinia,  a  Knight  of  the 
Elephant  of  Denmark,  a  Knight  of  Maria  Theresa,  a 
Knight  of  St.  George  of  Russia,  a  Knight  of  the  Crown 
of  Rue  of  Saxony,  a  Knight  of  Fidelity  of  Baden,  a 
Knight  of  Maximilian  Joseph  of  Bavaria,  a  Knight  of 
St.  Alexander  Newsky  of  Russia,  a  Knight  of  St.  Her- 
menegilda  of  Spain,  a  Knight  of  the  Red  Eagle  of  Bran- 
denburgh,  a  Knight  of  St.  Januarius,  a  Knight  of  the 
Golden  Lion  of  Hesse-Cassel,  a  Knight  of  the  Lion  of 
Baden,  a  Knight  of  Merit  of  Wurtembnrgh.  The  Lord 
High  Constable  of  England,  the  Constable  of  the  Tower, 
the  Constable  of  Dover  Castle,  Warden  of  the  Cinque 
Ports,  Chancellor  of  the  Cinque  Ports,  Admiral  of  the 
Cinque  Ports,  Lord-Lieutenant  of  Hampshire,  Lord- 
Lieutenant  of  the  Tower  Hamlets,  Ranger  of  St.  James's 
Park,  Ranger  of  Hyde  Park,  Chancellor  of  the  Univer- 
sity of  Oxford,  Commissioner  of  the  Royal  Military  Col- 
lege, Vice-President  of  the  Scottish  Naval  and  Military 
Academy,  the  Master  of  the  Trinity  House,  a  Gover- 
nor of  King's  College,  Doctor  of  Laws,  &c. 

M  VXIMS  AND  SENTENCES. 

THE  Lord's  Prayer  contains  the  sum  total  of  re- 
ligion and  morals. 

NAPOLEON  was  indeed  a  very  great  man,  but  he  was 
also  a  very  great  actor. 

I  DO  not  know  which  was  the  best  of  the  French 


196  WORDS   OF  WELLINGTON. 

marshals ;  but  I  know  that  I  always  found  Massena 
where  I  least  desired  that  he  should  be. 

SIR  JOHN  MOORE  was  no  pupil  of  mine ;  he  was  as 
brave  as  his  sword,  but  he  did  not  know  what  men 
could  do  and  could  rot  do. 

There  are  variously  shaped  heads;  now  mind  mine. 
It  is  a  square  head.  I  know  it,  for  Chantrey  told  me  so. 

POSSIBLE!  is  anything  impossible?  Read  the  news- 
papers. 

THE  army  at  Waterloo  was  the  worst  army  ever 
brought  together;  my  staff  was  composed  of  a  body  of 
young  gentlemen  to  whom  I  could  entrust  no  details. 

THERE  are  no  manifestoes  like  cannon  and  musketry. 

F.  M.  THE  DUKE  OF  WELLINGTON  (this  was  written 
in  answer  to  some  political  busybody)  is  one  of  the  few 
persons  in  this  country  who  don't  meddle  with  things 
with  which  they  have  no  concern. 

THE  DVKE  OF  WELLINGTON  can  give  no  opinion  upon 
that  of  which  he  knows  nothing. 

"WHAT,"  said  a  quid  nunc,  looking  up  with  import- 
ance and  chattering  about  Sir  De  Lacy  Evans  in  Spain, 
"what  will  all  this  produce  ?"  The  Duke  :  "  Probably 
two  volumes  octavo." 

A  ROUGH  workman  came  up  to  the  Duke  and  asked 
leave  to  shake  hands  with  him.  "  Certainly"  said  the 
Duke,  "  I  am  always  happy  to  shake  hands  with  an 
honest  man." 

SURPRISE  may  overtake  us  all.  "Were  you  not," 
asked  a  rude  questioner,  "was  not  your  Grace  surprised 
at  Waterloo?"  "No;  but  lam  now !" 

A  GREAT  country  ought  never  to  make  little  wars. 

WHEN  war  is  concluded  all  animosity  should  be  for- 
gotten. 

I  WOULD  sacrifice  Gwalior,  or  indeed  all  India,  ten 


-V./A'/.l/.s'.  197 

times  over,  in  order  to  preserve  our  credit  for  scrupulous 
good  faith. 

I  MISTRUST  the  judgment  of  every  man  in  a  case  in 
which  his  own  wishes  are  concerned. 

BE  discreet  in  all  things,  and  so  render  it  unne- 
cessary to  be  mysterious  about  any. 

THE  history  of  a  battle  is  like  the  history  of  a  ball. 

HE  is  most  to  blame  who  breaks  the  law  ;  no  matter 
what  the  provocation  may  be  under  which  he  acts. 

OXE  country  has  no  right  to  interfere  in  the  internal 
affairs  of  another.  Non-intervention  is  the  law,  inter- 
vention is  only  the  exception. 

I  AM  not  base  enough  to  allow  pillage  (to  Don  Freyre). 
If  you  wish  your  men  to  plunder,  you  must  name  some 
other  General  to  command  them. 

IT  would  undoubtedly  be  better,  if  officers  placed  in 
the  situation  in  which  you  were,  could  correct  neglects 
and  errors  likely  to  be  attended  by  consequences  fatal 
to  public  interests,  in  language  which  should  not  hurt 
the  feelings  of  the  person  to  whom  it  is  addressed ;  and 
with  a  manner  divested  of  vehemence. 

WHATEVER  may  be  a  man's  rank  or  situation,  he 
ought  to  be  treated  with  mildness  and  civility.  "  Ex- 
pressions of  this  sort,  harsh  language  to  inferiors,"  he 
said,  "are  not  necessary,  and  they  may  wound,  but 
they  never  convince." 

I  HOLD  a  high  office  under  Government,  but  I  am  not 
a  party  man. 

WE  ought  to  do  great  things  at  this  moment,  if  there 
was  less  of  party  and  more  of  public  spirit  in  England. 

So  long  as  the  enemy  is  in  the  country  we  must  do  all 
we  can  to  drive  him  out,  whatever  may  be  the  constitu- 
tional privileges  which  may  be  invaded  by  these  mea- 
sures. 


198  WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON. 

Mr  consolation  for  the  sacrifices  which  I  am  called 
upon  to  make,  I  must  find  in  that  hope  of  honourable 
fame  which  is  to  be  acquired  only  by  those  who,  accord- 
ing to  the  best  of  their  judgment,  fallible  at  the  best, 
pursue  the  course  which  leads  to  the  public  good. 

IN  regard  to  the  charge  of  kindness  to  the  enemy, 
I  am  afraid  it  is  but  too  well  founded,  and  that  until  it 
is  positively  ordered  by  authority,  that  all  enemy's  troops 
in  a  place  taken  by  storm  should  be  put  to  death,  it  will 
be  difficult  to  prevail  upon  British  officers  and  soldiers 
to  treat  an  enemy  when  they  are  prisoners  otherwise  than 
well. 

BETTER  lose  ten  provinces  than  sacrifice  our  repu- 
tation for  scrupulous  good  faith,  and  the  good  name 
which  we  have  acquired  in  the  war  with  the  Mahrnttas." 

STRICT  justice  ought  to  mark  every  proceeding  of 
the  English  East  India  Company  towards  the  natives. 

IT  is  difficult  to  say  what  will  be  successful,  and 
what  otherwise,  in  these  governments  of  intrigue  ;  but, 
in  my  opinion,  the  broad  direct  line  is  the  best. 

WE  ought  not  to  interfere  with  matters  that  don't 
concern  us. 

IT  is  a  sort  of  privilege  of  modern  Englishmen  to 
read  in  the  daily  newspapers  lies  respecting  those  who 
serve  them  ;  and  I  have  been  so  long  accustomed  to  be 
so  treated  that  I  should  not  have  thought  it  necessary 
to  trouble  you  on  the  subject,  &c.  ...  I  am 
really  quite  indifferent  respecting  what  is  read  of  me  in 
the  newspapers. 

I  REQUEST  you  to  understand  that  neither  I  nor  any 
other  officer  in  the  English  army,  has  any  right  to  arrest 
and  to  punish  magistrates  or  other  persons  invested  with 
civil  authority. 

IT  is  no  impulse  of  vanity  which  leads  me  to  speak 


MAXIMS.  199 

so  highly  of  my  opponent,  for  it  was  not  I  who  beat  him, 
but  the  determined  bravery  of  the  English  troops,  and 
their  unconquerable  steadiness. 

EVERYTHING  of  this  sort,  he  wrote,  of  despatches 
after  victory,  ought  to  be  treated  in  a  simple  style, 
without  inflation,  and,  above  all,  briefly.  Such  expres- 
sions as  Corez  sobre  os  nonuos  inimicos  (to  succumb  to 
our  enemies),  don't  touch  the  actual  evil.  Everybody 
in  Portugal  is  sufficiently  impressed  with  the  danger, 
and  eager  to  avoid  it.  We  have  enthusiasm  in  plenty, 
and  plenty  of  cries  of  Viva.  We  have  illuminations, 
patriotic  songs,  and  fetes  everywhere  ;  but  what  we  want 
is,  that  each  in  his  own  station,  should  do  his  duty  faith- 
fully, and  pay  implicit  obedience  to  legal  authority. 

WHATEVER  you  think  fit  to  publish,  confine  yourself 
to  a  plain  statement  of  facts  and  dates,  and  to  such 
arguments  as  may  be  intelligible  to  every  reader. 

THE  French  army  is  without  doubt  a  wonderful 
machine. 

FRANCE  is  not  an  enemy  whom  I  despise,  nor  does 
it  deserve  I  should. 

I  WHO  commanded  the  largest  British  army  em- 
ployed against  an  enemy  for  many  years,  who  had  upon 
my  hands  the  most  extensive  and  difficult  concern  ever 
imposed  upon  any  British  officer,  have  not  the  power  of 
making  even  a  corporal. 

I  COMMAND  the  army  (1809),  yet  I  have  no  power 
to  reward,  or  even  to  promise  a  reward. 

THAT  dish  is  no  doubt  excellent,  but  to  tell  the  plain 
truth  I  never  care  much  what  I  eat.  l 

DON'T  be  embarrassed    (To  Richard  Oastler,  gently 

1  To  Cambaceres,  a  renowned  gourmet,  who  immediately 
cried  out,  "Good  Heavens  !  Then  what  did  you  come  here 
for  then  ?  " 


200  WORDS   OF    WELLINGTON. 

placing  his  hand  on  his  shoulder).  Forget  that  you  are 
here ;  we  shall  never  get  on  if  you  are  embarrassed ; 
fancy  that  you  are  talking  with  one  of  your  neighbours 
at  Fixby,  and  go  on. 

WHEN  one  begins  to  turn  in  bed,  it  is  time  to  get 
up. 

Xo  recriminations  nor  quarrels  in  the  House  or  the 
press  will  do  us  (the  English)  good.  I  am  of  the  opinion 
with  Napoleon  that  we  had  better  wash  our  foul  linen 
at  home. 

LORD  CARDIGAN  and  Lord  Lucan  again !  (dashing 

down  a  mass  of  correspondence.)  By these  two 

lords  would  require  a  commander-in-chief  to  themselves. 
There  is  no  end  to  their  complaints  and  remonstrances. 

ENGLISH  soldiers  of  the  steady  old  stamp,  depend 
upon  it  there  is  nothing  like  them  in  the  world  in  the 
shape  of  infantry. 

SOLDIERS  not  riflemen.  We  must  not  allow  them 
to  fancy  they  are  all  riflemen,  or  they  will  become  con- 
ceited, and  be  wanting  to  be  dressed  in  green  or  in 
some  jach-a-dandy  uniform.  Keep  to  our  national  uni- 
form and  to  our  solid  steady  infantry. 

DEPEND  upon  it,  gentlemen,  the  greatest  enemies 
the  army  has  in  this  country  are  those  who  would  add 
unnecessarily  to  its  expense. 

THERE  is  little  or  nothing  in  this  life  worth  living 
for,  but  we  can  all  of  us  go  straightforward  and  do  our 
duty. 


IXDEX. 


iBBE    du    Pradt, 

163. 

Absent  in  Parlia- 
ment, 99. 
Abuse,  astonish- 
ment at,  '-'5. 

Accounts  not  to  be  relied  on, 
111  ;  of  Waterloo  impos- 
sible, 115. 

Acquiescence,  14. 

Acquitted  honourably,  65. 

After  the  battle,  178. 

Agitation  in  Ireland,  1 

Aibuera,  battle  of,  48. 

Allies,  bad  conduct  of,  108. 

Amildars  and  officers,  3. 

Anecdotes,  miscellaneous,  174. 

Animosity,  196. 

Anonymous  letters,  39,  43, 
125. 

Application,  surprising,  98. 

Approbation,  14. 

Army,  British,  25  ;  character 
of,  136;  dissatisfaction  in, 
25 ;  little  discipline  in,  71 ; 
head  of,  89 ;  French,  199. 

Arrest  of  magistrates,  198. 

Arthur's,  Sir,  consideration, 
2;  and  government,  ~. 

Articles.  Bntttwr,  104. 

Assemblies,  popular,  30. 


Attacking,  before,  6. 
Attitude  of  England,  171. 
Austrian  marriage,  34. 
Authorities,  independent,  62. 

BABA  Pin  RKIA,  19. 
Back  door,  31. 
Badajoz,  letter  from,  32. 
Bad  egg,  177. 
Bad  conduct  of  allies,  108. 
Ball  and  a  battle,  110. 
Ballot,  the,  159. 
:    Battle    and  a  ball,  110;    of 

Waterloo,  109;  after,  178; 

history  of,  197;  of  Toulouse, 

91. 

Beer  bill,  139. 
I    Before  attackim:,  (J. 
Begging  favours,  128. 
Bivouacking,  161. 
Bludgeon  work,  73. 
Bobus  Smith,  174. 
Boulogne,  invasion,  170. 
Bourbon  part}-,  87 ;  and  peace, 

103. 

Bribery,  10. 
British  cavalry,  131. 

„       invincibility,  50. 

„       moderation,  19. 
Brunow,  Count,  168. 
Buckingham  Palace,  138. 


INDEX. 


Buonaparte,  detestation  of,  84; 
tyranny,  47 :  and  French, 
81;  overturned,  92;  and  Eu- 
rope, 97;  brought  back,  98; 
hors  de  la  loi,  100;  founda- 
tion of  power  of,  103 ;  opera- 
tions of,  107;  fate,  107; 
death-blow,  106;  selfishness 
of,  163. 

CABINET  minister,  123. 

Calumnies,  showers  of,  79. 

Campaign,  review  of,  57. 

Campbell,  Colin,  37 ;  Sir  John, 
149. 

Cardigan,  Lord,  200. 

Carlos,  Don,  164. 

Catholics,  Irish  Roman,  128. 

Causes,  tracing  of,  23. 

Cavalry  galloping,  51. 

Cessation  of  hostilities,  17. 

Champagne,  Colonel,  9. 

Characteristics  of  Duke,  194. 

Character  of  Mahrattas,  17. 

Charity,  172  ;  reasonable.  21. 

Church  in  Ireland,  130,  142. 

Civility,  197. 

Claims,  service,  13. 

Close,  Lieut. -Colonel,  4. 

Clothing,  military,  46. 

Coat,  Uellington's,  193. 

Cock-tailed  horse,  46. 

Colin  Campbell,  37. 

Commissariat,  52. 

Commissions,  Post-office,  152. 

Common  Council  and  Wel- 
lington, 32. 

Complaints,  soldiers',  56. 

Confinement,  solitary,  133. 

Consideration  for  soldiers,  3. 

Contagion,  84. 

Conversion,  death-bed,  172. 

Cool  Judgment,  41. 

Correspondence,  6 ;  of  officers, 
40. 


Country  divided,  114. 
Court  martial,  111. 
Cramped  by  instructions,  93. 
Credit,  public,  51. 

DARLINO,  Major-Gen.,  99. 

Dearly-bought  glory,  106. 

Death-bed  conversion,  172. 

Debt,  imprisonment  for,  158. 

Dedication,  scruples  about,  32. 

Defence  of  self,  8. 

Defensive,  on  the,  101. 

Delivery  of  orders,  43. 

Desertion,  34. 

Difficulties,  172 ;  Spanish,  29. 

Difficulty  of  position,  42. 

Disapprobation  undeserved,  9. 

Discipline  of  cavalry,  18  ; 
foundation  of,  51 ;  of  army, 
59  ;  officers,  60 ;  little  real, 
71. 

Discretion,  197. 

Discussious, official, 35  :  Irish, 
1J4, 

Disposition  to  mercy,  19. 

Dissatisfaction  in  army,  25. 

Dissenters,  Irish,  130. 

Don  Carlos,  164. 

Drurv-lane  Theatre,  at,  119. 

Duende  newspaper,  79. 

Duke's  health,  124;  the,  at 
church,  167 ;  praying,  167  ; 
smiling  in  death,  168 ;  sits 
for  portrait,  165,  168;  with 
children,  165 ;  his  coolness, 
177;  Waterloo,  after,  178  ; 
good  night,  169 ;  head,  Iti.i  ; 
Hay  don  s  letter  to,  162; 
powerless,  199  ;  no  party 
man,  197 ;  characteristics, 
honours,  194;  habits,  193; 
maxims,  195;  and  Sir  \\IH. 
Allan,  193;  and  Haydon, 
165  et  seq. ;  and  workmen, 
196. 


INDEX. 


203 


Dnngannon.  Lady,  175. 

Du  Pradt,  Abbe,  163. 

Du  Stael,  .Madme,  163. 

Duty,  unhesitating,  23;  pub- 
lic man's,  20  ;  without  mor- 
tification, 68. 

Duty,  68;  of  godfather,  117. 

Dying  of  love,  42. 

Dynasties,  the  two,  85. 

ECONOMY,  real,  14. 

Ehen,  Baron,  39. 

Kiigland,  attitude  of,  171 ;  and 

France,  172 ;  hatred  of,  172. 
English  name  disgraced,  13; 

bravery,  199;  quarrels,  200; 

soldiers,  200. 
Enthusiasm,  French,  28. 
Kstute  in  England,  56. 
Esteem,  gratifying,  20. 
Etiquette,  military,  31. 
Eton,  Wesley  at,  174. 
Evils  of  War,  86. 
Existing  government,  23. 

F.uirm  of  potatoes,  134. 

Faith,  good,  198. 

False  reports,  89. 

Famine,  Irish,  13,"). 

Favours,  begging,  l'J8 ;  re- 
ceived, 44. 

Fools  and  knaves,  7. 

Fortified  places,  95. 

Fortunate  man,  65. 

Fort  William,  Bengal,  133. 

France,  199;  position  of,  111; 
and  England,  172 ;  peace 
with,  170 ;  hates  England, 
172. 

Free  press  in  Malta,  160. 

Free  trade,  140. 

French  government,  66;  and 
Buonaparte,  81 ;  neutrality, 
96;  army,  199, 


G.u  i.  .\\TRY  of  troops,  50. 
Galloping  cavalry,  51. 
Game  laws,  139.' 
Gentleman,  like  a,  33. 
German  troops,  81. 
Glory  dearly  bought,  106. 
Godfather,  duties  of,  117, 
Good  faith,  198;  British,  21. 
Goodnight,  duke's,  169. 
Government  and  Sir  Arthur, 

7  ;  the  existing,  23. 
Governors  general,  145. 
Gratifying  esteem,  20. 

HARD  pounding,  178. 
Hatred  of  England,  172. 
Health,  public,  84. 
Help  unnecessary,  118. 
History  of  a  battle,  197. 
Honor  and  interest,  ;;.;. 
Honourably  acquitted,  65. 
Honours,  55. 
Hospital,  orders  for,  11. 
Hostilities,  cessation  of,  17. 


ii  -,  military,  83. 

Imprisonment  for  debt,  158. 

Jnadmissihle  doctrine,  67. 

Indifference,  philosophical,  6. 

Indolence,  Portuguese,  39. 

Influence,  197  ;  of  woman.  67. 

Insurgents,  118. 

Interest,  promotion  by,  76. 

Ireland,  Roman  Catholics  in, 
128;  evil  in,  128;  invasion  of, 
126  ;  Church  in,  130  ;  .1  iiries' 
Mill,  143  —  advantages  of, 
144  ;  state  of,  149  ;  Church 
Temporalities'  Bill,  1  15  . 
agitation  in,  146,  158. 

Irish  famine,134;  pover: 
Protestant  petition.  l.'>3. 

Isolation,  172. 


204 


INDEX. 


J  EWS,  emancipation  of,  146 ; 

not  Christians,  147. 
Judgment,  cool,  41. 
Joseph  King,  88. 
Justice,  112. 

KIND  letter,  57. 

King  Joseph,  88. 

King,  situation  of  the,  122. 

Kings  of  Spain,  118. 

Kittoor,  Rajah  of,  10. 

Knaves  and  fools,  7. 

LAKES,  American,  85. 
Language  of  officers,  73. 
Laws,  Game,  139. 
Letter,  kind,  51 ;  anonymous, 

39,  43. 

Libellous  nonsense,  40. 
Lieut.  Wesley,  175. 
Life,  worth  of,  200. 
Liverpool,  Lord,  letter  to,  42. 
Long  marches,  19. 
Louis  Philippe,  171. 
Love,  dying  of,  42. 
Lowe,  Sir  Hudson,  121. 
Loyal  support,  151. 
Lucan,  Lord,  200. 
Lusitanian  legion,  44. 

MAGISTRATES,  arrest  of,  198. 

Magnates,  Indian,  12. 

Mahratta  country,  1 ;  truth, 
19. 

Mahratta's  character,  17. 

Majesty,  64. 

Malcolm,  to  Major,  17 ;  co- 
lonel, 32. 

Malta,  161. 

Manifestoes,  196. 

Man,  "rights  of  men,"  6;  for- 
tunate, 65. 

Marches,  long,  19. 


i    Marriage,  Austrian,  34. 

Match,  pounding,  108. 
i    Maxims,  195. 

Medal  question,  80. 
I    Mercy,  disposition,  18. 
I    Metamorphosis  of  Nelson,  151. 
|    Military,  civil  editing  of,  49; 

impossibilities,  83. 
I    Militia,  151. 

Minister,  Cabinet,  123. 

Miscellaneous  Anecdotes,  174. 

Mischief  of  Irish  discussions, 
124. 

Mis-statement,  124. 

Mistakes,  \\aterloo,  116. 

Mob,  remedy  for,  117. 

Moderation,  British,  19. 

Modesty,  23. 

Money,  prize,  16. 

Moore,  Sir  John,  196. 

Mortars  (in  siege),  75. 

Movements   of   large  bodies, 
16. 

Munro,  letter  to,  1, 16. 

|    NAPOLEON,  195  ;  Louis,  170  ; 

Buonaparte,  163. 
National  passion,  141. 
Natives,  conduct  of,  1 ;  ideas 

of  time,  4 ;  trading  with,  4  ; 

marriages,  15. 
Necessity  for  secresy,  37. 
Nelson,  Lord,  150. 
Neutrality,  French,  96. 
Newspaper  paragraphs,  28. 
Newspapers  and  slave  trade, 

97  ;    harm,  78 ;    libel,   79  ; 

lies,  113,198;  Moniteur,  104. 
j    Nonsense,  libellous,  40. 

I  O'CONNELL,  Mr.,  126  ;  prose- 
cution of,  127. 

;  Officers,  inexperience  of,  60  ; 
change  of,  61 ;  removal  of, 


IXDEX. 


105 


63 ;  language  of,  73 ;  re- 
quire to  be  kept  in  order, 
45 ;  intriguing,  125. 

Operations,  continuing,  107. 

Orange,  Prince  of,  69. 

Orders,  British,  68;  delivery 
of,  43;  for  hospital,  11. 


P.UNE'S  Rights  of  Man,  136. 
Palace,  Buckingham,  138. 
Paragraphs,  newspaper,  38. 
Paris,  things  in,  114. 
Party,   Bourbon,   87;    spirit, 

15 ;  men,  197. 
Passion,  national,  141. 
Peace  and  the  Bourbons,  103. 

„      the   object  of   govern- 
ment, 91. 
Peroune,  108. 
Peshwar,  11,  12. 
Philippe,  Louis,  171. 
Philosophical  indifference,  6. 
Philosophy,  9. 
Pillage,  197. 
Placability,  194. 
Places,  fortified,  95. 
Plunder,  161;  and  rapine,  35. 
Police  Bill,  138. 
Politics,  study  of,  172. 
Popular  assemblies,  30. 
Portuguese,  39  ;  character  of, 

43. 
Position  of  army  at  Waterloo, 

104;  of  France,  111. 
Post  Office  Bill,  152. 
Potato  crop,  failure  of,  134. 
Pounding  match,  108. 
Poverty,  Irish,  139. 
Powers  of  Europe,  109. 
Prayer,  Lord's,  195. 
Predatory  war,  14. 
Press,  the,  170;  free  in  Malta, 

160. 
Prince  Talleyrand,  140. 


Prize  money,  16. 
Proclamation  to  Spaniards,  54. 
Procuring  intelligence,  104. 
Promotion    by    interest,  76 ; 

claims  for,  35. 
Property,  security  of,  161. 
Protestant    population,    15ft) ; 

sovereigns  in  Europe,  132  ; 

petition,  Irish,  153. 
Provost  duty,  25. 
Public  credit,  51 ;  health,  84  ; 

affairs,   secresy,  12;  spirit, 

197. 

Public  traducers,  70. 
Punishment,  37. 

QUEEN  VICTORIA'S  household, 
155;  consort,  156;  speech, 
157. 

Question,  both  sides  of,  24 ; 
medal,  80 ;  slavery,  95. 

RAILWAYS,  151. 
Rancourt,  Mdlle.,  97. 
Rapine  and  plunder,  35. 
Real  economy,  14. 
Recollections,  112, 
Recruiting,  best  way  of,  77. 
Recruits,  63 ;  German,  81. 
Redactor  newspaper,  80. 
Remains  of  French  army,  106. 
Remedy  for  mob,  127. 
Removal  of  officers,  62. 
Reports,  false,  89. 
Responsibility,  14. 
Review  of  campaign  (1812), 

57. 

"  Rights  of  Men  "  man,  6. 
Risk  in  actions,  10. 
Roman  Catholics   in  Ireland, 

128 ;  disabilities,  137. 
Rosy  and  dosy,  166. 
Rules,  submission  to,  17. 
Russia,  Emperor  of,  122. 


2O6 


IXDEX. 


SALAMANCA,  52. 

Sale  of  beer,  138. 

Scenes,  deatb-bed,  172. 

Sebastian,  plunder  of,  78. 

Second  in  command,  62. 

Secrecy,  necessity  for,  37. 

Sentiments,  favour  of  Spanish, 
24. 

Service  claims,  13 ;  public,  4. 

Shawe,  17. 

Shower  of  calumnies,  79. 

Shrapnel's  shells,  49. 

Siege,  military,  75. 

Slavery,  144 ;  question,  95 ; 
abolition  of  bill,  148. 

Slave  trade,  94 ;  abolition  of, 
97;  traffic,  134;  West  In- 
dia, 144. 

Slovenly  business,  65. 

Smith,  Bobus,  174. 

Soldiers'  solitary  confinement, 
133 ;  complaints,  56 ;  old, 
63 ;  English,  200  ;  weight 
of,  176. 

Soult,  Marshal,  88. 

Southey,  Mr.,  121;  and  Pe- 
ninsular war,  120. 

Spain,  kings  of,  118;  disease 
of,  38 ;  withdrawal  from, 54 ; 
services  to,  67. 

Spaniards,  proclamation  to,  51. 

Spanish  slavery,  75 ;  charac- 
ter, 72;  conduct,  41;  ener- 
gy, 53;  and  France,  33; 
revolution,  57. 

Spirit,  party,  15 ;  want  of,  35. 

Stein,  M.  de,  102. 

Stuart,  Charles,  38. 

Style,  simple,  199. 

Success,  military,  74. 

Supposing,  176. 

Surprise,  196. 

TALLEYRAND,  Prince,  140. 
Temporalities'  Bill,  145. 


;    Test  Act  136. 
!    Theocracy  in  Ireland,  129. 
!    Time,  17 ;  military,  5  ;  native 
ideas  of,  4. 

Torrens,  Lieut. -Col.,  36. 

Toulouse,  battle  of,  91, 
I    Trades'  unions,  159. 
!   Traducers,  public,  70. 
I   Traffic,  slave,  134. 

Tranquillity,  38. 
i    Troops,  raw,  14;  gallantry  of, 
50;  German,  82. 

Truth,  Marhatta,  19. 

Tyranny,  Buonaparte's,  47. 

UNHESITATING  duty,  2;3. 
Unions,  trades',  159. 
Unnecessary  help,  118. 

VALUE,  full  to  be  given,  lu2. 
Victoria's,  Queen,  household, 

155. 

Villiers,  Hon.  J.,33. 
Vimiero,  action,  24. 
Vittoria,  70 ;  medals,  90. 
V  olumes  in  8vo.,  196. 

WANT,  national,  72  ;  of  spirit, 
35. 

War,  predatory,  14;  conclu- 
sion of,  20, 35  ;  evils  of,  86 ; 
a  little,  159;  risk  of,  171. 

Water  and  pepper,  18. 

Waterloo,  battle  of,  109 ;  po- 
sition of  army  at,  101;  mis- 
takes of,  116;  again,  115; 
true  account  of,  impossible, 
115  ;  mistakes  concerning, 
118;  after,  178  ;  armyat,196. 

Weight  of  soldiers,  176. 

Wellington,  characteristics, 
194;  habits,  193;  honours, 
194  ;  maxims  of,  195  :  coat 
of,  193;  and  Haydon,  165; 


INDEX. 


Wm.  Allan,  Sir,  193;  at 
church,  167 ;  at  prayers, 
167;  head  of,  165;  Water- 
loo, after,  178 ;  and  work- 
men, 196;  hook  nose  of, 
177 ;  hard  pounding,  178  ; 
Sir  John  Moore,  196. 


207 

y,  Lieut.,  175. 
Wi'stmcath  magistrates,  141. 
William  IV.,  153. 
Withdrawal  from  Spain,  54. 
Women,  influence  of,  67. 
Wonderful  times,  172. 
Worship,  soldiers',  29. 


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This  is  the  happy  warrior ;  this  is  he 
That  every  man  in  arms  would  wish  to  be." —  Wordsworth. 

SAINT  LOUIS,  KING  OF  FRANCE.  The  curious  and 
characteristic  Life  of  this  Monarch  by  De  Joinville.  Translated  by 
James  Hutton. 

"  St.  Louis  and  his  companions,  as  described  by  Joinville,  not  only  in 
their  glistening  armour,  but  in  their  every-day  attire,  are  brought  nearer 
to  us,  become  intelligible  to  us,  and  teach  us  lessons  of  humanity  which  we 
can  learn  from  men  only,  and  not  from  saints  and  heroes.  Here  lies  the 
real  value  of  real  history.  It  widens  our  minds  and  our  hearts,  and  gives 
us  that  true  knowledge  of  the  world  and  of  human  nature  in  all  its  phases 
which  butfeic  can  gain  in  the  short  span  of  their  men  life,  and  in  the  nar- 
row sphere  of  their  friends  and  enemies.  We  can  hardly  imagine  a  better 
book  for  boys  to  read  or  for  men  to  ponder  over." — Times. 

THE  ESSAYS  OF  ABRAHAM  COWLEY.  Comprising  all 
his' Prose  Works ;  the  Celebrated  Character  of  Cromwell,  Cutter  of  Cole- 
man  Street,  &c.  &c.  With  Life,  Notes,  and  Illustrations. 

"  Praised  in  his  dny  as  a  great  Poet ;  the  head  of  the  school  of  poets 
called  metaphysical,  he  is  now  chiefly  knoicn  by  those  prose  essays,  all  too 
short,  and  all  too  few,  which,  whether  for  thought  or  for  expression,  hace 
rarely  been  excelled  by  any  writer  in  any  language." — Mary  Russell 
Mitford's  Recollections. 

ABDALLAH   AND   THE  FOUR-LEAVED   SHAMROCK. 

By  Edonard  Laboullaye,  of  the  French  Academy.    Translated  by  Mary 
L.  Booth. 

One  of  the  noblest  and  purest  French  stories  ever  written. 


List  of  Publications. 


The  Bayard  Series, — 

TABLE-TALK   AND   OPINIONS  OF  NAPOLEON   THE 

FIRST. 

A  compilation  from  the  best  sources  of  this  great  man's  shrewd  and 
often  prophetic  thoughts,  forming  the  best  inner  life  of  the  most  extraordi- 
nary man  of  modern  times. 

THE  KING  AND  THE  COMMONS :   Cavalier  and  Puritan 

Poems.     Selected  and  Arranged  by  Henry  Morley,  Professor  of  Litera- 
ture, London  University. 

•»•  ft  wns  in  working  on  this  volume  that  Mr.  Morley  discovered  the 
New  Poem  attributt-d  to  Milton.  A  facsimile  of  the  Poem  and  Signature 
J.  or  P.  M.,  with  parallel  pnssnges,  and  the  whole  of  the  evidence,  pro 
and  con,  is  given  in  the  prefatory  matter. 

VATHEK.     An  Oriental  Romance.     By  William  Beckford. 

"  Beckford's  '  Vathek '  is  here  presented  as  one  of  the  beautifully  got- 
tip  works  included  in  Messrs.  Low  and  Co.'s  '  Bayard  Series,'  every  one 
of  which  is  a  gem,  and  the  '  Oiliph  Vathek '  is,  perhaps,  the  gem  of  the 
collection."— Illustrated.  Times. 

WORDS  OF  WELLINGTON.  Maxims  and  Opinions,  Sen- 
tences and  Reflections,  of  the  Great  Dnke,  gathered  from  his  Despatches, 
Letters  and  Speeches.  Printed  at  the  Chiswick  Press,  on  toned  paper, 
cloth  extra,  price  2*.  6rf. 

'•  One  of  the  best  books  that  could  be  put  into  the  hands  of  a  youth  to 
influence  him  for  good."— Notes  aud  Queries. 

RASSELAS,  PRINCE  OF  ABYSSINIA.     By  Dr.  Johnson. 

With  Introduction  by  the  Rev.  William  West,  B.A. 

"  We  are  glad  to  welcome  a  reprint  of  a  little  book  which  a  great  master 
of  English  prose  once  said,  '  will  clnim  perhaps  the  first  place  in  English 
composition  for  a  model  of  grave  and  majestic  language.'  It  contains  so 
many  grave  maxims,  so  many  hints  us  to  the  conduct  of  life,  and  so  much 
vigorous  and  suggestive  thought,  and  shrewd  insight  into  the  follies  and 
frailties,  the  greiitncss  and  weakness  of  human  nature,  that  it  is  just  one 
of  those  books  which,  like  '  Bacon's  Essays,'  we  read  again  and  again  with 
ever-increasing  profit  and  pleasure." — Examiner. 


" '  The  Bayard  Series '  is  a  perfect  marvel  of  cheapness  and  of  exquisite 
taste  in  the  binding  and  getting  up.  We  nope  and  believe  that  thest 
delicate  morsels  of  choice  literature  will  be  widely  and  gratefully  wel- 
comed."— Nonconformist  "  Every  one  of  the  works  included  in  this  series 
is  well  worth  possessing,  and  the  whole  will  make  an  admirable  foundation 
for  the  library  of  a  studious  youth  of  polished  and  refined  tastes." — 
Illustrated  Times.  "  We  have  here  two  more  volumes  of  the  series  ap- 
propriately called  the  '  Bayard,'  as  they  certainly  are  '  sans  reproche.' 
Of  convenient  size,  with  clear  typography,  and  tasteful  binding,  we  know- 
no  other  little  volumes  which  make  such  good  gift  books  for  persons  of 
mature  age." — Examiner.  "  If  the  publishers  go  on  as  they  have  begun, 
they  will  have  furnished  us  with  one  of  the  most  valuable  and  attractive 
series  of  books  that  have  ever  been  issued  from  the  press." — Sunday  Times. 
"  There  has,  perhaps,  never  been  produced  anything  more  admirable,  either 
as  regards  matter  or  manner." — Oxford  Times. 


Sampson  Low  and  Co.'s 


The  Gentle  Life  Series. 

Printed  in  Elzevir,  on  Toned  Paper,  and  handsomely  bound, 
forming  suitable  Volumes  for  Presents. 

Price  6s.  each  ;  or  in  calf  extra,  price  1  Os.  6d. 


THE  GENTLE  LIFE.  Essays  in  Aid  of  the  Formation  of 
Character  of  Gentlemen  and  Gentlewomen.  Ninth  Edition. 

"  His  "notion  of  a  gentleman  is  of  the  noblest  and  truest  order.  The 
volume  is  a  capital  specimen  of  what  may  be  done  by  honest  reason, 
high  feeling,  and  cultivated  intellect.  A  little  compendium  of  cheerful 
philosophy."  —  Daily  News.  "  Deserves  to  be  printed  in  letters  of  gold, 
and  circulated  in  every  house."  —  Chambers's  Journal.  "  The  tenter's 
object  is  to  teach  people  to  be  truthful,  sincere,  generous  :  to  be  humble- 
minded,  but  bold  in  thought  awl  action."  —Spectator.  u  It  is  with  the  more 
satisfaction  that  we  meet  with  a  new  essayist  who  delights  without  the 
smallest  pedantry  to  quote  the  choicest  wisdom  of  our  forefathers,  and 
who  abides  by  those  old-fashioned  Christian  ideas  of  duty  which  Steele  and 
Addison,  jcits  and  men  of  the  world,  were  not  ashamed  to  set  before  the 
young  Englishmen  of  1713."  —  London  Review. 

II. 

ABOUT  IN  THE  WORLD.  Essays  by  the  Author  of  "  The 
Gentle  Life." 

"  It  is  not  easy  to  open  it  at  any  page  without  finding  some  happy  idea." 
Morning  Post.  "  Another  characteristic  merit  of  these  essays  is,  that  they 
make  it  their  business,  gently  lut  firmly,  to  apply  the  qualifications  and  the 
corrections,  which  all  philanthropic  theories,  all  general  rules  or  maxims,  or 
principles,  stand  in  need  of  before  you  can  make  them  work."  —  Literary 
Churchman. 

III. 

LIKE  UNTO  CHRIST.  A  new  translation  of  the  «  De  Imita- 
tione  Christi,"  usually  ascribed  to  Thomas  a  Kempis.  With  a  Vignette 
from  an  Original  Drawing  by  Sir  Thomas  Lawrence.  Second  Edition. 

"  Think  of  the  little  work  of  Thomas  a  Kempis,  translated  into  a  hundred 
languages,  and  sold  by  millions  of  copies,  and  which,  in  inmost  moments 
cf  deep  thought,  men  make  the  guide  of  their  hearts,  and  the  friend  of 
their  closets."  —  Archbishop  of  York,  at  the  Literary  Fnnd,  1865. 

"  Evinces  independent  scholarship,  a  profound  feeling  for  the  original. 
and  a  minute  attention  to  delicate  shades  of  expression,  which  may  well 
make  it  acceptable  even  to  those  who  can  enjoy  the  work  without  a  trans- 
lator's aid."  —  Nonconformist.  "  Could  not  be  presented  in  a  more  exquisite 
form,  for  a  more  sightly  volume  was  never  seen."  —  Illustrated  London 
News.  "  The  preliminary  essay  is  well-written,  good,  and  interesting."  — 
Saturday  Review. 


List  of  Publications. 


IV. 

FAMILIAR  WORDS.  An  Index  Verborum,  or  Quotation 
Handbook.  Affording  an  immediate  Reference  to  Phrases  and  Sentences 
that  have  become  embedded  in  the  English  language.  Second  and  en- 
larged Edition. 

"  Should  be  on  every  library  table,  by  the  side  of '  Pnget's  Thesaurus.' ' 
— Daily  News.  "  Almost  every  familiar  quotation  is  to  be  found  in  this 
work,  which  forms  a  book  of  reference  absolutely  indispensable  to  the  lite- 
rary man,  and  of  interest  and  service  to  the  public  generally.  Mr.  I 
has  our  best  thanks  for  his  painstaking,  laboriout,  and  conscientious 
work." — City  Press. 

V. 

ESSAYS  BY  MONTAIGNE.   Edited, Compared,  Revised, and 

Annotated  by  the  Author  of  "  The  Gentle  Life."   With  Vignette  Portrait. 
Second  Edition. 

'•  We  should  be  glad  if  any  word*  of  ours  could  help  to  bespeak  a  large 
circulation  for  this  handsome  attractive  book ;  and  who  can  refuse  his 
homage  to  the  good-humoured  industry  of  the  editor." — Illustrated  Times. 
"  The  reader  really  gets  in  a  compact  form  all  of  the  charming,  chatty 
Muntnigne  thfit  he  needs  to  know." — Observer.  "  2'his  edition  it  jntre  of 
questionable  matter,  and  its  perusal  is  calculated  to  enrich  without  cor- 
rupting the  mind  of  the  reader." — Daily  News. 

VI. 

THE  COUNTESS  OF  PEMBROKE'S  ARCADIA.     Written 

by  Sir  Philip  Sidney.     Edited,  with  Notes,  by  the  Author  of  "The  Gentle 
Life."     Dedicated,  by  permission,  to  the  Earl  of  Derby.     7s.  6d. 

"  All  the  best  things  in  the  Arcadia  are  retained  intact  in  Mr.  frisiceU's 
edition,  and  t-i-en  lirowjht  into  greater  prominence  than  in  the  original,  by 
the  curtailment  of  some  of  its  inferior  portions,  and  the  omission  tiftnu.it  of 
its  eclogues  and  other  metrical  digressions." — Examiner.  "  It  was  in  itself 
a  thing  so  interesting  as  a  development  of  English  literature,  that  we  are 
thankful  to  Mr.  tristi-fll  for  reproducing,  in  a  very  elegant  volume,  the 
chief  work  of  the  gallant  and  chivalrous,  the  gay  yet  learned  knight,  whn 
patronized  the  muse  of  Spenser,  and  fell  upon  the  bloody  field  of  Zutphen, 
/Hiring  behind  him  a  light  of  heroism  mid  humane  compassion  which  would 
shed  an  eternal  glory  on  his  name,  though  all  he  ever  wrote  had  perished 
with  himself."— London  Review. 

VII. 

THE  GENTLE  LIFE.     Second  Series.     Third  Edition. 

"  There  is  the  same  mingled  power  and  simplicity  which  makes  the 
author  so  emphatically  a  first-rate  essayist,  giving  a  fascination  in  each 
essay  which  will  make  this  volume  at  least  as  popular  as  its  elder  brother." 
—Star.  "  These  essays  are  amongst  the  bett  i*  our  language."— Public 
Opinion. 

VIII. 

VARIA  :  Readings  from  Rare  Books.  Reprinted,  by  permis- 
sion, from  the  Saturday  K'fiew,  Spectator,  Sic. 

"  The  bookf  discussed  in  this  volume  are  no  less  valuable  than  they  are 
rare,  but  life  is  not  long  enough  to  allow  a  rentier  In  trade  through  such 
thick  folios,  and  therefore  the  compiler  is  entitled  to  the  gratitude  of  the 
public  for  hat-ing  sfteil  their  contents,  and  t/itreby  rendered  their  treasures 
available  to  the  general  reader." — Observer. 


Sampson  Low  and  Go's. 


IX. 
A  CONCORD ANCE  OR  VERBAL  INDEX  to  the  whole  of 

Milton's  Poetical  Works.     Comprising  upwards  of  20,000  Reference*. 
By  Charles  D.  Cleveland,  LL.D.     With  Vignette  Portrait  of  Milton. 

*»•  This  work  affords  an  immediate  reference  to  any  passage  in  any 
edition  of  Milton's  Poems,  to  which  it  may  be  justly  termed  an  indis- 
pensable Appendix. 

"  By  the  admirers  of  Milton  the  book  will  be  highly  appreciated,  but  its 
chief  value  will,  if  we  mistake  not.  be  fuund  in  the  fact  that  it  is  a  compact 
word-book  of  the.  English  language." — Record.  "  An  invaluable  Index, 
which  the  publishers  have  done  a  public  service  in  reprinting." — Notes  and 
Queries. 

X. 
THE   SILENT  HOUR :  Essays,'  Original  and   Selected.     By 

the  Author  of  "  The  Gentle  Life."     Second  Edition. 

"  Out  of  twenty  Essays  five  are  from  the  Editor's  pen,  and  he  has  se- 
lected the  rest  from,  the  writings  of  Barrow,  Baxter,  Sherlock,  Massillon, 
Lut.imer,  Sandys,  Jeremy  Taylor,  Ruskin,  and  Izaac  Walton.  The  se- 
lections have  been  made  with  taste  and  judgment,  and  the  Editor's  own 
contributions  are  not  unworthy  in  themselves  of  a  place  in  such  dis- 
tinguished  company.  The  volume  is  avowedly  meant  'for  Sunday  reading, 
and  those  who  have  not  access  to  the  originals  of  great  authors  may  do 
worse  on  Sunday  or  any  other  afternoon,  than  fall  bark  upon  the  '  Silent 
Hour'  and  the  golden  words  of  Jeremy  Taylor  and  Masfillon.  All  who 
possess  the  '  Gentle  Life'  should  own  this  volume." — Standard. 

XI. 

ESSAYS  ON  ENGLISH  WRITERS,  for  the  Self-improve- 
ment  of  Students  in  English  Literature. 

"  The  author  has  a  distinct  purpose  and  a  proper  and  noble  ambition  to 
win  the  young  to  the  pure  and  noble  study  of  our  glorious  English  literature. 
The  book  is  too  good  intrinsically  not  to  command  a  wide  and  increasing 
circulation,  and  its  style  is  so  pleasant  and  lively  that  it  will  find  many 
readers  among  the  educated  classes,  as  icell  as  among  self -helpers.  To  all 
(both  men  and  women)  who  have  neglected  to  read  and  study  their  native 
literature  we  would  certainly  suggest  the  volume  before  us  as  a  fitting  in- 
troduction."— Examiner. 

XII. 

OTHER  PEOPLE'S  WINDOWS.  By  J.  Hain  Friswell. 
Second  Edition. 

"  The  old  project  of  a  window  in  the  bosom  to  render  the  soul  of  man 
visible,  is  what  every  honest  fellow  has  a  manifold  reason  to  wish 
for."— Pope's  Letters,  Dec.  12,  1718. 

"  The  chapters  are  so  lively  in  themselves,  so  mingled  with  shrewd  vines 
of  human  nature,  so  full  of  illustrative  anecdotes,  that  the  reader  cannot 
fail  to  be  amused.  Written  with  remarkable  power  and  effect.  '  Other 
Peoples  Windows '  is  distinguished  by  original  and  keen  observation  of 
life,  as  well  as  by  lively  and  versatile  power  of  narration." — Morning  Post. 
"  We  have  not  read  a  cleverer  or  more  entertaining  book  for  a  long  time." 
Observer.  "  Some  of  the  little  stories  are  very  graceful  and  tender,  but 
Mr.  Friswell's  style  is  alu-ays  bright  and  pleasant,  and  '  Other  People's 
Windows '  is  just  the  book  to  lie  upon  the  drawing-room  table,  and  be  read 
by  snatches  at  idle  moments." — Guardian. 


List  of  Publications. 


LITERATURE,     WORKS     OF     REFERENCE,    ETC. 

HE  Origin  and  History  of  the  English  Language,  and 
of  the  early  literature  "it  embodies.  By  the  Hon.  George  P. 
Marsh.  U.  S.  Minister  at  Turin,  Author  of  "Lecture*  on  the 
English  Language."  8vo.  cloth  extra,  16s. 

Lectures  on  the  English  Language;  forming  the  Introductory 
Series  to  the  foregoing  Work.  By  the  same  Author.  8vo.  Cloth,  16t. 
This  is  the  only  author's  edition. 

Man  and  Nature ;  or.  Physical  Geography  as  Modified  by  Human 
Action.  By  George  P.  Marsh,  Author  of  "  Lectures  on  the  English  Lan- 
guage," &c.  8vo.  cloth,  14s. 

"  Mr.  Mirsh,  well  known  n*  the  author  of  two  of  the  most  scholarly 
works  yet  published  on  the  English  language,  sets  himself  in  excellent 
spirit,  and  with  immense  learning,  to  indicate  the  character,  and,  approxi- 
mately, the  extent  of  the  chanqi-s  produced  by  human  action  in  the  physical 
condition  of  the  globe  we  inhabit.  The  whole  of  Mr.  Marsh's  book  is  an 
eloquent  showing  of  the  duty  of  care  in  the  establishment  of  harmony 
between  man's  life  and  the  forces  of  nature,  so  as  to  bring  to  their 
points  the  fertility  of  the  soil,  the  vigour  of  the  animal  life,  and  the  salubrity 
of  the  cliimitf,  on  which  we  have  to  depend  for  the  physical  well-being  of 
mankind." — Examiner. 

Her  Majesty's  Mails:  a  History  of  the  Post  Office,  and  an 
Industrial  Account  of  its  Present  Condition.  By  \Vm.  Levvins,  of  the 
General  Post  Office.  2nd  Edition,  revised  and  enlarged,  with  a  Photo- 
graphic Portrait  of  Sir  Rowland  Hill.  Small  post  8vo.  6*. 

A  History  of  Banks  for  Savings  ;  including  a  full  account  of  the 
origin  and  progress  of  Mr.  Gladstone's  recent  prudential  measures.  By 
William  Lewins,  Author  of  "  Her  Majesty's  Mails."  gro.  cloth.  12». 

The  English  Catalogue  of  Books :  giving  the  date  of  publication 
of  every  book  published  from  1&.'J5  to  1863,  in  addition  to  the  title,  si*e, 
price,  and  publisher,  in  one  alphabet.     An  entirely  new  work,  combining 
the  Copyrights  of  the  "  London  Catalogue  "  and  the  "  British  Catalogue." 
One  thick  volume  of"  900  pages,  half  morocco.  45*. 
*.*  The  Annual  Catalogue  of  Books  published  during  1868  with  Index 
of  Subjects.    8vo.     &s. 

Index  to  the  Subjects  of  Books  published  in  the  United  Kingdom 
during  the  lost  Twenty  Years — 1837-1857-  Containing  as  many  as  74.000 
references,  under  subjects,  so  as  to  ensure  immediate  reference  to  the 
books  on  the  subject  required,  each  giving  title,  price,  publisher,  and 
date.  Two  valuable  Appendices  are  also  given — A,  containing  full  lists 
of  all  Libraries,  Collections,  Series,  and  Miscellanies — and  B,  a  List  of 
Literary  Societies,  Printing  Societies,  and  their  Issues.  One  vol.  royal 
8vo.  Morocco.  It.  6s. 

%•  Volume  II.  from  1857  in  Preparation. 

Outlines  of  Moral  Philosophy.  By  Dugald  Stewart.  Professor 
of  Moral  Philosophy  in  the  University  of  Edinburgh,  with  Memoir,  &c. 
By  James  McCosh,  ^L.i).  New  Edition,  12mo.  3s.  6d. 


10  Sampson  Low  and  Co.'s 

A  Dictionary  of  Photography,  on  the  Basis  of  Button's  Dictionary. 

Rewritten  by  Professor  Dawson,  of  King's  College.  Editor  of  the  "Journal 
of  Photography;"  and  Thomas  Suttoa,  B.A.,  Editor  of  "Photograph 
Notes."  8vo.  with  numerous  Illustrations.  8s.  6rf. 

Dr.  Worcester's  New  and  Greatly  Enlarged  Dictionary  of  the 
English  Language.  Adapted  for  Library  or  College  Reference,  compris- 
ing 40,000  Words  more  than  Johnson's  Dictionary.  4to.  cloth,  1,834  pp. 
price  31s.  Gd.  well  bound. 

"  The  volumes  before  ns  show  a  vast  amount  of  diligence;  but  with 
Webster  it  is  diligence  in  combination  with  fancifulness, — with  Wor- 
cester in  combination  with  good  sense  and  judgment.  Worcester's  is  the 
soberer  and  safer  book, and  maybe  pronounced  the  best  existing  English 
Lexicon." — Athentfum. 

The  Publishers'  Circular,  and  General  Record  of  British  and 
Foreign  Literature;  giving  a  transcript  of  the  title-page  of  every  work 
published  in  Great  Britain,  and  every  work  of  interest  published  abroad, 
with  lists  of  all  the  publishing  houses. 

Published  regularly  on  the  1st  and  loth  of  every  Month,  and  forwarded 
post  free  to  all  parts  of  the  world  on  payment  of  8s.  per  annum. 

A  Handbook  to  the  Charities  of  London.  By  Sampson  Low, 
Jun.  Comprising  an  Account  of  upwards  of  800  Institutions  chiefly  in 
London  and  its  Vicinity.  A  Guide  to  the  Benevolent  and  to  the  Unfor- 
tunate. Cloth  limp.  Is.  6d. 

Prince  Albert's  Golden  Precepts.  Second  Edition,  with  Photo- 
graph. A  Memorial  of  the  Prince  Consort ;  comprising  Maxims  and 
Extracts  from  Addresses  of  His  late  Royal  Highness.  Many  now  for 
the  first  time  collected  and  carefully  arranged.  With  an  Index.  Royal 
16mo.  beautifully  printed  on  toned  paper,  cloth,  gilt  edges,  2s.  6d. 

Our  Little  Ones  in  Heaven :  Thoughts  in  Prose  and  Verse,  se 
lected  from  the  Writings  of  favourite  Authors ;  with  Frontispiece  after 
Sir  Joshua  Reynolds.  Fcap.  8vo.  cloth  extra.  Second  Edition.  3s.  6d. 


BIOGRAPHY,    TRAVEL,    AND    ADVENTURE. 

HE  Life  of  John  James  Audubon,  the  Naturalist,  in- 
cluding his  Romantic  Adventures  in  the  back  woods  of 
America,  Correspondence  with  celebrated  Europeans,  &c. 
Edited,  from  materials  supplied  by  his  widow,  by  liobert  Bu- 
chanan. 8vo.  With  portraits,  price  15s. 

"  A  readable  book,  with  main/  interesting  and  some  thrilling  pages  in 
it." — Athenaeum.  "  from  first  to  last,  the  biography  teems  with  interesting 
adventures,  with  amusing  or  perilous  incidents,  with  curious  gossip,  with 
picturesque  description." — Daily  News.  "  Hut,  as  we  hare  said,  Audubon 
could  write  as  well  as  draw ;  and  while  his  portfolio  wa.t  a  cause  of  wonder 
to  even  such  men  as  Cwier,  Wilson,  and  Sir  Thomas  Lawrence,  his  diary 
contained  a  number  of  spirited  sketches  of  the  places  he  had  visited,  which 
cannot  fail  to  interest  and  even  to  delight  the  reader,"— Examiner. 


List  of  Publications.  1 1 

Leopold  the  First,  King  of  the  Belgians;  from  unpublished 
documents,  by  Theodore  Juste.  Translated  by  Robert  Black,  M.A. 

"  A  readable  biography  of  the  wise  and  good  King  Leopold  is  certain  to 
be  read  in  England."— Daily  News.  "  A  more  important  contribution  to 
historical  literature  has  not  for  a  long  whili-  bci-n  furnished."— \>>e\Vs 
Messenger.  "  Of  great  value  to  the  future  historian,  and  will  interest 
politicians  even  now."— Spectator.  "  The  subject  in  if  interest,  and  the 
story  is  narrated  without  excess  of  enthusiasm  or  depreciation.  The  trans- 
lation by  Mr.  Black  is  executed  with  correctm-xt; .  :/,  t  m,t  without  a  grace- 
ful ease.  This  end  is  not  often  attained  in  translations  so  nearly  verbal  a* 
this ;  the  book  itself  deserves  to  become  popular  in  England." — Athenarum. 

Fredrika  Bremer's  Life,  Letters,  and  Posthumous  Works. 
Edited  by  her  sister.  Charlotte  Bremer;  translated  from  the  Swedish 
by  Fred.  Milow.  Post  8vo.  cloth.  10s.  <W. 

The  Rise  and  Fall  of  the  Emperor  Maximilian :  an  Authentic 
History  of  the  Mexican  Empire,  1861-7.  Together  with  the  Imperial 
Correspondence.  With  Portrait,  8vo.  price  10s.  Gd. 

Madame  Recamier,  Memoirs  and  Correspondence  of.  Trans- 
lated from  the  French  and  edited  by  J.  M.  Luyster.  With  Portrait. 
Crown  8vo.  7s.  6d. 

Plutarch's  Lives.  An  entirely  new  Library  Edition,  carefully 
revised  and  corrected,  with  some  Original  Translations  by  the  Editor. 
Edited  by  A.  H.  Clough,  Esq.  sometime  Fellow  of  Oriel  College,  Oxford, 
and  late  Professor  of  English  Language  and  Literature  at  University 
College.  5  vols.  8vo.  cloth.  21.  10s. 

Social  Life  of  the  Chinese :  a  Daguerreotype  of  Daily  Life  in 
China.  Condensed  from  the  Work  of  the  Rev.  J.  Doolittle,  by  the  Rev. 
Paxton  Hood.  With  above  100  Illustration*.  Post  8vo.  price  8s.  6d. 

The  Open  Polar  Sea :  a  Narrative  of  a  Voyage  of  Discovery 
towards  the  North  Pole.  By  Dr.  Isaac  I.  Hayes.  An  entirely  new  and 
cheaper  edition.  With  Illustrations.  Small  post  8vo.  6». 

The  Physical  Geography  of  the  Sea  and  its  Meteorology ;  or,  the 
Economy  of  the  Sea  and  its  Adaptations,  its  Salts,  its  Waters,  its  Climates, 
it-s  Inhabitants,  and  whatever  there  may  be  of  general  interest  in  its  Com- 
mercial Uses  or  Industrial  Pursuits.  By  Commander  M.  F.  Maury,  LL.1> 
New  Edition.  With  Charts.  Post  8vo.  cloth  extra. 

Captain  Hall's  Life  with  the  Esquimaux.  New  and  cheaper 
Edition,  with  Coloured  Engravings  and  upwards  of  100  Woodcnta.  With 
a  Map.  Price  7s.  6d.  cloth  extra.  Forming  the  cheapest  and  most  popu- 
lar Edition  of  a  work  on  Arctic  Life  and  Exploration  ever  published. 

Christian  Heroes  in  the  Army  and  Navy.  By  Charles  Rogers, 
LL.D.  Author  of  ••  Lyra  Britannica."  Crown  8vo.  3s.  6rf. 

The  Black  Country  and  its  Green  Border  Land ;  or,  Expedi- 
tions and  Explorations  rcund  Birmingham,  Wolverhamptou,  &c.  By 
Elihu  Burritt.  Second  and  cheaper  edition,  post  Svo.  6s. 

A  Walk  from  London  to  John  O'Groats,  and  from  London  to 
the  Land's  End  and  Back.  With  Notes  by  the  Way.  By  Elihu  Bnrritt. 
Two  vols.  price  6s.  each,  with  Illustrations. 


12  Sampson  Low  and  Cb.'s 

The  Voyage  Alone ;  a  Sail  in  the  "  Yawl,  Rob  Roy."  By  John 
M'Gregor.  With  Illustrations.  Price  5s. 

Also,  uniform,  by  the  same  Author,  with  31aps  and  numerous  Illus- 
t  tratiojis,  price  5s.  each. 

A  Thousand  Miles  in  the  Rob  Roy  Canoe,  on   Rivers   and   Lakes  of 
Europe.     Fifth  edition. 

The  Rob  Roy  on  the  Baltic.     A  Canoe  Voyage  in  Norway,  Sweden,  &c. 

NEW    BOOKS    FOR    YOUNG    PEOPLE. 

ILD  Life  under  the  Equator.     By  Paul  Du  Chailln, 

Author  of  "  Discoveries   in   Equatorial  Africa."     With  40 
Original  Illustrations,  price  6s. 

"  M.  du  Chctillu's  name  irill  be  a  sufficient  guarantee  for  the  interest  of 
Wild  Life  under  the  Equator,  which  he  has  narrated  for  young  people  in 
a  very  readable  volume." — Times.  "  M.  Du  Chaillu  proves  a  good  writer 
for  the  young,  and  he  has  skilfully  utilized  his  experience  for  their  benefit." 
— Economist.  "  The  author  possesses  an  immense  advantage  over  other 
writers  of  Adventures  for  boys,  and  this  is  secure  for  a  popular  run :  it 
is  at  once  light,  racy,  and  attractive.'' — Illustrated  Times. 

Also  by  the  same  Author,  uniform. 
Stories  of  the  Gorilla  Country,  36  Illustrations.     Price  6s. 

"  It  would  be  hard  to  find  a  more  interesting  book  for  boys  than  this.v — 
Times.  "  Young  people  will  obtain  from  it  a  very  considerable  amount 
of  information  touching  the  manners  and  customs,  ways  and  means  of 
Africans,  and  of  course  great  amusement  in  the  accounts  of  the  Gorilla. 
The  book  is  really  a  meritorious  work,  and  is  elegantly  got  up." — Athenaeum. 

Cast  Away  in  the  Cold.  An  Old  Man's  Story  of  a  Young:  Man's 
Adventures.  By  the  Author  of"  The  Open  Polar  Sea."  With  Illus- 
trations. Small  8vo.  cloth  extra,  price  6s. 

"  The  result  is  delightful.  A  story  of  adventure  of  the  most  telling 
local  colour  and  detail,  the  most  exciting  danger,  and  eliding  with  the  most 
natural  and  effective  escape.  There  is  an  air  of  veracity  and  reality 
about  the  tale  which  Capt.  Hayes  could  scarcely  help  giving  to  an  Arctic 
adventure  of  any  kind.  There  is  great  vivacity  and  picturesqueness  in 
the  style,  the  illustrations  are  admirable,  and  there  is  a  novelty  in  the 
'  denouement '  which  greatly  enhances  the  pleasure  u-ith  which  we  lay  the 
book  down.  ITiis  story  of  the  two  Arctic  Crusoes  will  long  remain  one  of 
the  most  pou-erful  of  children's  stories,  as  it  assuredly  deserves  to  be  one 
of  the  most  popular." — Spectator. 

The  Silver  Skates;  a  Story  of  Holland  Life.  By  Mrs.  M.  A. 
Dodge.  Edited  by  W.  H.  G.  Kingston.  Illustrated,  cloth  extra,  3s.  6d. 

The  Voyage  of  the  Constance ;  a  tale  of  the  Polar  Seas.  By 
Mary" Gillies.  With  8  Illustrations  by  Charles  Keene.  Fcap.  3s.  6d. 


List  of  Publications.  13 


Life  amongst  the  North  and  South  American  Indians.  By 
George  Catlin.  And  Last  Rambles  amongst  the  Indians  beyond  the 
Rocky  Mountains  and  the  Andes.  With  numerous  Illustrations  by  the 
Author.  2  vols.  small  post  8vo.  6s.  each,  cloth  extra. 

"  An  admirable  book,  full  of  useful  information,  irrupt  up  in  stories 
peculiarly  adapted  to  rouse  the  imagination  unit  stimulate  the  curiosity  of 
boys  and  girls.  To  compare  a  book  with.  '  Kvbinson  Crusoe,'  and  to  say 
that  it  sustains  such  comparison,  is  to  give  it  high  praise  indeed." — 
Athenaeum. 

Our  Salt  and  Fresh  Water  Tutors ;  a  Story  of  that  Good  Old 
Time— Our  School  Days  at  the  Cape.  Edited  by  W.  H.  Q.  Kingston. 
With  Illustrations,  price  3s.  tjrf.  . 

"  One  of  the  best  books  of  the  kind  that  the  seaxon  has  given  us.  This 
little  book  is  to  be  commended  warmly." — Illustrated  Times. 

The  Boy's  Own  Book  of  Boats.     A  Description  of  every  Craft 
that  sails  upon*  the  waters ;  and  how  to   Make,  Ilig,  and  Sail   Model 
Boats,  by  W.  H.  Q.  Kingston,  with  numerous  Illustrations  by  E.  Weedon. 
Second  edition,  enlarged.     Fcap.  8vo.  3s.  6d. 
"  This  well-written,  well-wrought  book." — Athenteum. 

Also  by  the  same  Author, 

Kriicst  Bran-bridge  ;  or.  Boy's  Own  Book  of  Hports.     3s.  6rf. 
Tin'  !•  ire  Ships.     A  Story  of  the  Days  of  Lord  Cochrane.     6s. 
The  Cruise  of  the  Frolic.     5s. 
Jack  Buutline:  the  Life  of  a  Sailor  Boy.     2s. 

The  Autobiography  of  a  Small  Boy.  By  the  Author  of"  School 
Days  at  Saxonhnrst."  Fcap.  8vo.  cloth,  5s.  [Nearly  ready. 

Also  now  ready. 

Alwyn  Morton,  his  School  and  his  Schoolfellows.     5«. 
Stanton  Grange;  or,  Life  at  a  Tutor's.     By  the  Her.  C.  J.  Atkinson.  5s. 

Phenomena  and  Laws  of  Heat :  a  Volume  of  Marvels  of  Science. 
By  Aehille  Cazin.  Translated  and  Edited  by  Elihn  Rich.  With 
numerous  Illustrations.  Fcap.  8vo.  price  5s. 

Also,  uniform,  same  price. 

Marvels  of  Optics.     By  F.  Marion.     Edited  and  Translated  by  C.  W. 

Quiu.     With  70  Illustrations.     5s. 
Marvels  of  Thunder  and  Lightning.     By  De  Fonvielle.     Edited  by  Dr. 

Phipson.     Full  of  Illustrations.     5s. 

Stories  of  the  Great  Prairie.  From  the  Novels  of  J.  F.  Cooper. 
Illustrated.  Brice  5s. 

Also,  uniform,  same  price. 

Stories  of  the  Woods,  from  the  Adventures  of  Leather-Stocking. 
Stories  of  the  Sea,  from  Cooper's  Naval  Novels. 
The  Voyage  of  the  Constance.     By  Mary  Gillies.     3s.  6rf. 
The  Swiss  Family  Robinson,  and  Sequel.     In  1  vol.     a?.  6d. 
The  Story  Without  an  Kud.    Translated  by  Sarah  Austin.    2s.  6d. 


14  Sampson  Low  and  (?o.'s 

Under  the  Waves ;  or  the  Hermit  Crab  in  Society.  By  Annie 
E.  Ridley.  Impl.  16mo.  cloth  extra,  with  coloured  illustration  Cloth, 
4s. ;  gilt  edges,  4s.  6rf. 

Also  beautifully  Illustrated: — 

Little  Bird  Red  and  Little  Bird  Blue.     Coloured,  5s. 
Snow-Flakes,  and  what  they  told  the  Children.     Coloured,  5s. 
Child's  Book  of  the  Sagacity  of  Animals.    5s. ;  or  coloured,  7s.  6rf. 
Child's  Picture  Fable  Book.    5s. ;  or  coloured,  7s.  6rf. 
Child's  Treasury  of  Story  Books.    5s. ;  or  coloured,  7s.  6d. 
The  Nursery  Playmate.     200  Pictures.    5s. ;  or  coloured,  9s. 

Adventures  on  the  Great  Hunting-Grounds  of  the  World.  From 
the  Frence  of  Victor  Meunier.  With  additional  matter,  including  the 
Duke  of  Edinburgh's  Elephant  Hunt,  &c.  With  22  Engravings, 
price  5s. 

"  The  book  for  all  boys  in  whom  the  love  of  travel  and  adventure  is 
strong.  They  will  find  here  plenty  to  amuse  them  and  much  to  instruct 
them  besides." — Times. 

Also,  lately  published, 

One  Thousand  Miles  in  the  Rob  Roy  Canoe.  By  John  Macgregor,  M.A.  5s. 
The  Rob  Roy  on  the  Baltic.     By  the  same  Author.    5s. 
Sailing  Alone;  or,  1,500  Miles  Voyage  in  the  Yawl  Rob  Roy.     By  the 

same  Author.    5s. 

Golden  Hair;  a  Tale  of  the  Pilgrim  Fathers.  By  Sir  Lascelles  Wraxall.  5s. 
Black  Panther  :  a  Boy's  Adventures  amongst  the  Red  Skins.     By  the 

same  Author.    5s. 

Anecdotes  of  the  Queen  and  Royal  Family  of  England.  Collected, 
arranged,  and  edited,  for  the  more  especial  use  of  Colonial  Readers,  by 
J.  George  Hodgins,  LL.  B  ,  F.R.G.S.,  Deputy  Superintendent  of  Educa- 
tion for  the  Province  of  Ontario.  With  Illustrations.  Price  5s. 

Geography  for  my  Children.  By  Mrs.  Harriet  Beecher  Stowe. 
Author  of  "  Uncle  Tom's  Cabin,"  &c.  Arranged  and  Edited  by  an  Eng- 
lish Lady,  under  the  Direction  of  the  Authoress.  With  upwards  of  Fifty 
Illustrations.  Cloth  extra,  4s.  6</. 

Child's  Play.  Illustrated  with  Sixteen  Coloured  Drawings  by 
E.  V.  B.,  printed  in  fac-simile  by  W.  Dickes'  process,  and  ornamented 
with  Initial  Letters.  New  edition,  with  India  paper  tints,  royal  8vo. 
cloth  extra,  bevelled  cloth,  7s.  6d.  The  Original  Edition  of  this  work 
was  published  at  One  Guinea. 

Little  Gerty ;  or,  the  First  Prayer,  selected  and  abridged  from 
"  The  Lamplighter."  By  a  Lady.  Price  6d.  Particularly  adapted 
for  a  Sunday  School  Gift  Book. 

Great  Fun  and  More  Fun  for  our  Little  Friends.  By  Harriet 
Myrtle.  With  Edward  Wehuert's  Pictures.  2  vols.  each  5s. 


List  of  Publications.  15 


BELLES    LETTRES,    FICTION,    &c. 

E  LOG  OF  MY  LEISURE  HOURS:   a  Story  of 

Real  Life.     By  an  Old  Sailor.     3  vols.  post  8vo.  24s. 

"If  people  do  not  read  '  The  Log  '  it  will  have  failed  as 
regards  them  ;  but  it  is  a  success  in  every  setae  of  the  word  at 
regards  its  author.  It  deserves  to  succeed." — Morning  Post. 

David  Gray  ;  and  other  Essays,  chiefly  on  Poetry.  By  Robert 
Buchanan.  In  one  vol.  fcap.  Svo.  price  6s. 

The  Book  of  the  Sounet;  being  Selections,  with  an  Essay  on 
Sonnets  and  Sonneteers.  By  the  late  Leigh  Hunt.  Edited,  from  the 
original  MS.  with  Additions,  by  S.  Adams  Lee.  2  vols.  price  18*. 

"  Reading  a  book  of  this  sort  should  make  tu  feel  proud  of  our  language 
and  of  our  literature,  and  proud  also  of  that  cultivated  common  nature 
u-hich  can  raise  so  many  nolle  thoughts  and  images  out  of  this  hard,  sullen 
world  into  a  thousand  enduring  firms  of  beauty.  The  '  Hook  of  the  Son- 
net '  should  be  a  classic,  aiut  the  professor  as  well  a*  the  student  if  English 
will  find  it  a  work  of  deep  interest  and  completeness." — London  .Review. 

Lyra  Sacra  Americana:  Gems  of  American  Poetry,  selected 
with  Notes  and  Biographical  Sketches  by  C.  D.  Cleveland,  I). 0.,  Author 
of  the  "  Milton  Concordance."  18mo.,  cloth,  gilt  edges.  Price  4s.  6d. 

Poems  of  the  Inner  Life.  Selected  chiefly  from  modern  Authors, 
by  permission.  Small  post  Svo.  6s. ;  gilt  edges,  6s.  6d. 

English  and  Scotch  Ballads,  &c.  An  extensive  Collection. 
With  Notices  of  the  kindred  Ballads  of  other  Nations.  Edited  by  F.  J. 
Child.  8  vols.  fcap.  clotn,  3s.  tW  eai-h 

The  Autocrat  of  the  Breakfast  Table.  By  Oliver  Wendell 
Holmes,  LL.D.  Popular  Edition,  Is.  Illustrated  K  litiou,  choicely 
printed,  cloth  extra,  6*. 

The  Professor  at  the  Breakfast  Table.  By  Oliver  Wendell  Holmes, 
Author  of  "  The  Autocrat  of  the  Breakfast-Table."  Cheap  Edition, 
fcap.  3s.  6d. 

Bee-keeping.  By  "  The  Times  "  Bee-master.  Small  post  8vo. 
numerous  illustrations,  cloth,  5s. 

"  Our  friend  the  Hee-master  has  the  knack  of  exposition,  and  knows  how 
to  tell  a  story  well ;  over  and  above  which,  he  t'lls  a  story  so  that  thousands 
can  take  a  practical,  and  not  merely  a  speculative  interest  in  it." — Times. 

Queer  Little  People.     By  the  Author  of  "  Uncle  Tom's  Cabin." 
Frap.     Is.     Also  by  the  snme  Author. 
The  Little  Foxes  that  Spoil  the  Grapes,  Is. 
House  and  Home  Papery  Is. 

The  Pearl  of  Orr's  Island.  Illustrated  by  Gilbert,  os. 
The  Minister's  Wooing.     Illustrated  by  Phiz,  5s. 


16        Sampson  Low  and  Co.'s  List  of  Publications. 

The  Story  oC  Four  Little  Women;  Meg,  Joe,  Beth,  and  Amy 
By  Louisa  M.  Alcott.  With  Illustrations.  16mo,  cloth  3s.  (W. 

"  A  bright,  cheerful,  healthy  story — with  a  tinge  of  thoughtful  gravity 
about  it  which  reminds  one  of  John  Punynn.  Mtij  going  to  lanity  F(m 
is  a  chapter  written  with  great  cleverness  and  a  pleasant  humour."— 
Guardian. 

Also,  Entertaining  Stories  for  Young  Ladies,  3s.  6d,  each,  cloth,  gilt  edges. 

Helen  Felton's  Question :  a  Book  for  Girls.     By  Agnes  Wylde. 

Faith  Gartney's  Girlhood.     By  Mrs.  D.  T.  Whitney.     Seventh  thousand 

The  Gayworthys.     By  the  same  Author.     '1  bird  Edition. 

A  Summer  in  Leslie  Goldthwaite's  Life.     By  the  same  Anthor. 

The  Masoue  at  Ludlow.     By  the  Author  of  "  Mary  Powell." 

Miss  Biddy  Frobisher:  a  Salt  Water  Story.     By  the  same  Author. 

Selvaggio;  a  Story  of  Italy.  By  the  same  Author.    New  Edition. 

The  Journal  of  a  Waiting  Gentlewoman.  By  a  new  Author.  New  Edition 

The  Shady  Side  and  the  Sunny  Side.     Two  Tales  of  New  England. 

Marian ;  or,  the  Light  of  Some  One's  Home.  By  Maud  Jeann< 
Franc.  Small  post  8vo.,  5s. 

Also,  by  the  same  Author. 
Emily's  Choice :  an  Australian  Tale.    5s. 
Vermont  Vale :  or,  Home  Pictures  in  Australia.    5s. 

Tauchnitz's  English  Editions  of  German  Authors.  Each  volum< 
cloth  flexible,  2s. ;  or  sewed,  Is.  6d.  The  following  are  now  ready  : — 

1.  On  the  Heights.     By  B.  Anerbach.    3  vols. 

2.  In  the  Year  '13.     By  Fritz  Renter.    1  vol. 

3.  Faust.     By  Goethe.     1  vol. 

4.  Undine,  and  other  Tales.     By  Fouqne.     1  vol. 
5    L'Arrabiata.     By  Paul  Heyse.     1  vol. 

6.  The  Princess,  and  other  Tales.     By  Heinrich  Zschokke.     1  vol. 

7.  Lessing's  Nathan  the  Wise. 

8.  Hacklander's  Behind  the  Counter,  translated  by  Mary  Hewitt. 

Low's  Copyright  Cheap  Editions  of  American  Authors.  ^ 
thoroughly  good  and  cheap  series  of  editions,  which,  whilst  comhinin, 
every  advantage  that  can  be  secured  by  the  best  workmanship  at  th 
lowest  possible  rate,  will  possess  an  additional  claim  on  the  readiu 
public  by  providing  for  the  remuneration  of  the  American  author  an 
the  legal  protection  of  the  English  publisher.  Ready  : — 

1.  Haunted  Hearts.     By  the  Author  of  "  The  Lamplighter." 

2.  The  Guardian  Angel.     By  "  The  Autocrat  of  the  breakfast  Table." 

3.  The  Minister's  Wooing.     By  the  Author  of  "  Uncle  Tom's  Cabin." 

To  be  followed  by  a  New  Volume  on  the  first  of  every  alternate  month 
Kach  complete  in  itself,  printed  from  new  type,  with  Initial  Letters  and  Orns 
nicuts,  and  published  at  the  low  price  of  Is.  6(1.  stiff  cover,  or  2s.  cloth. 

LONDON:    SAMPSON    LOW,   SON,    AND    MARSTOK 

CROWN  BUILDINGS,  188,  FLEET  STREET. 
English,  American,  and  Colonial  Booksellers  and  Publishers. 


Chiswick  Prewf— Whittingham  and  Wilkins,  Tooks  Court,  Chancery  Laue 


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